


Liars Among the Last

by dman_ao3



Category: Among Us (Video Game)
Genre: Character Development, F/F, F/M, Growth, Murder, Other, Plot, Serious, Some Humor, Trauma, Violence, Work In Progress, Worldbuilding
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-24
Updated: 2021-03-09
Packaged: 2021-03-09 21:14:54
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 30
Words: 17,855
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27702619
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dman_ao3/pseuds/dman_ao3
Summary: A routine freight mission aboard the Skeld takes a deadly turn when the crew begins to suspect foulplay in the wake of a crippling emergency. Forced to rely on each other, the survivors must hold together both their damaged ship and their dwindling morale if they hope to reach their destination safely. But does everyone on board share that same goal?
Comments: 35
Kudos: 30





	1. Struck

Purple shouted a continuous stream of distressing status updates from her perch at the helm. “Stabilization dysfunctional! Thruster controls unresponsive! Power surge in lower engine!”

“Dammit Lieutenant, tell me what _is_ working!” Black yelled above the blaring alarm.

“What _is_ working?” She spun around and stood up. “These legs to get my ass down to Engines and find out just who the hell isn’t doing their job! And your ass, too, Captain.”

“The reactor room,” shouted Black, joining her as they fled the bridge. “The engines will take care of themselves.”

“Tell that to Cyan,” she yelled back.

Their footsteps down the steel-plated corridors combined with the screaming of the master alarm drowned out any further attempts at conversation as they wound their way to the rear of the vessel. They passed through the Shields control room when Black suddenly stopped and turned, having spotted a stray crewmate. “Yellow! Get your ass to the reactor!”

“I’m not done.”

“Now!”

“You told me to—make up your damn mind!”

The captain strode up to Yellow and nabbed the folds of her spacesuit, pulling her visor up to his. “Gimme a reason. Just one reason.”

“Captain!” Purple was waiting in the doorway.

Black shoved yellow out in front and the three continued down the hall. As they passed by Comms, Yellow caught a glimpse of Blue, sitting as always at his desk, furiously trying to raise an SOS. The captain didn’t stop to pull him into the fray, she noted resentfully.

Meanwhile in the reactor room, Green was just as much on the verge of a meltdown as the glowing chamber towering before him. The instrument panel froze against his attempts to quell the overload. The enclosure pulsated wildly, a surefire indication that containment structures were working well beyond their rated capacities. This was uncharted territory; nothing in the books could advise how to save it, and without a secondary authorization, it could not even be outright killed.

“Where the devil _is_ she, dammit?” He threw his runbook to the floor. “Is fate really so frail?” he shouted to no one. “Everyone’s dead because Brown can’t fetch the goddamn command personnel?”

Red came charging into the Reactor room. “Weapons are offline – where the hell is power?”

“It’s everywhere it shouldn’t be! Where’s the captain?”

“Didn’t see him.”

“God dammit.” Green sweated profusely beneath his spacesuit. The alarm made it impossible to think! “Forget weapons! I think we lost upper engine. The reactor’s gone haywire. Go decom lower engine before she rips it apart.”

“I don’t know engines, doc. Where the hell is Cyan?”

“Upper engine, where the asteroid hit!”

Red nodded with a grunt and disappeared.

Green turned back to the reactor. What was the point? He should have sent Red to find Black too. He had almost wandered off by himself to fetch the captain, but feared Brown might finally return with Black while he was gone. He should have just left! He could have looped the entire ship twice by now, but instead he had insisted there might be a way to quell the surge. Now he was sure there was only mere seconds remaining before an unpleasant, albeit instant death.

Mercifully, the captain appeared in the doorway, accompanied by Purple and Yellow.

“Captain, thank God! Where have you been? Nevermind, the kill switch!” Green pointed across the room while dashing to the opposite corner, knocking over his chair and a stack of papers. He arrived gracelessly to a covered emergency panel on the wall. Purple vaulted the safety railing and raced to the second switch on the opposite side of the room. Lifting the cover, she pressed her hand against the scan plate. She looked across the room to see Green had done the same.

For a brief, terrifying moment, nothing happened, and the blare of the master alarm echoed as fiercely as ever throughout every room aboard the Skeld as if the ship were screaming in anticipation of the imminent explosion. Then it was silenced. The glow of the reactor immediately began to fade as control matter flooded the enclosure, killing the reaction so quickly, so completely, it was as though it had never once lived. Green witnessed the extermination – it was beautiful and heartbreaking all at once; a magnificent atomic and chemical phenomenon, and the murder of his brainchild. He hung his head; he could not save it.

The room went dark for a moment, then the lights flickered back on as the four of them collectively sighed with relief.

Just then, Brown came careening into the room. “There’s… I… Cyan…” she sputtered breathlessly.

“Where were you?” Green roared, directing all his grief and stress at his whimpering pupil.

She heaved a gasp and then weakly exclaimed: “He’s dead!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Document ID: #01  
> Title: Crew Roster  
> Contents:  
>  **Black** (M) - (Capt., CO) Commander  
>  **Purple** (F) - (Lt., CO) First Mate  
>  **Red** (M) - (Sgt., enlisted NCO) Weapons and Defense Officer  
>  **Yellow** (F) - (B.S., DD) Electrical Engineer  
>  **Blue** (M) - (B.S., civilian) Communications Specialist  
>  **Cyan** (M) - (N/A, civilian) Head Engineer  
>  ~~ **White** (M) - (B.S., civilian) Secondary Engineer~~ Reneged  
>  **Green** (M) - (Ph.D., civilian) Nuclear Physicist  
>  **Brown** (F) - (M.S., civilian) Physicist, understudy  
>  **Pink** (F) - (M.D., civilian) Onboard Medical Personnel  
> 


	2. Privilege Escalation

They gathered in a circle around the table. The overhead lights flickered, dimly powered by emergency fuel reserves from their remaining engine. No one spoke. Only Pink could be heard, sobbing gently. Yellow and Brown sat beside her, doing their best to comfort her with a hand on her shoulder and on her lap. The rest stared apprehensively at one another, or at the floor.

Finally, Black broke the silence, his voice echoing through the ghostly cafeteria. “Lieutenant Purple and I looked the scene up and down. Lieutenant?”

“The damage to the engine was catastrophic, but,” she hesitated, looking briefly down at the floor, “let’s not sugar coat it. It wasn’t the asteroid or the engine blast. He was stabbed multiple times from behind.”

“Are you saying it’s one of us?” Blue said.

Purple turned toward him slowly. “I haven’t said anything yet.”

“Who do you think it is?”

“Blue, let her finish for crying out loud,” said Red.

“Thank you, Red,” Purple said dryly. “It also appears the body was not moved. He died where he stood. Does anyone know who was around?”

“Red was in lower engine,” said Blue.

“Who the hell asked you?” said Red, turning to him.

“It’s true,” Green added. “Because I sent him there. Because Cyan had already been busy with upper engine, for obvious reasons.”

“Yeah,” Red continued. “And I was there the whole time, trying to deflect the power surge. Captain, you saw.”

“Pink,” Blue said, ignoring them. “You said you were locked in Medbay, right?”

“Yeah,” she sniveled. “At first I thought it was just a safety door, like a fire door or something, but the lights started flickering and I couldn’t get out, I couldn’t get it open! I heard footsteps outside so I started shouting and screaming, but the door didn’t open until...”

“Sounds a little suspicious.”

Pink was dumbstruck. Yellow stood up abuptly beside her. “Will you back off? Look at you pointing fingers. That’s easy enough. I didn’t see you come join the Reactor party, Blue. I didn’t see Brown either, right until the end. But so fucking what? What about me, asshole? Do you know where I was?”

“Actually–”

“Enough,” Black snapped. “Yellow, shut up. Blue, lay off. The door was shut tight, I had to open it myself. So unless you think she squeezed through the damn ventilation, I’m ruling her out.”

“Technically possible,” Green mumbled to himself.

“Furthermore,” Black continued. “I’m making an executive call here. We’re granting admin privileges to the entire crew. No more locked doors. No more scrambling for myself or Purple to kill the reactor. Manual overrides for all emergency related systems.”

“Captain, don’t,” said Red, looking around the table. “If one of them did it, you’re just giving keys to a killer. Give the override to me. Only me.”

“Like hell!” Blue spat.

“ _Everyone_ gets it,” the captain repeated. “The keys to the kingdom stay with me. This is just overrides for emergency systems and data access.”

“No data,” said Blue.

“Yes data,” said Black. “Everyone needs to see where everyone’s been. Everyone needs to know what everyone’s doing, and the state of the Skeld. It’s a risk we’ll have to take.”

The crewmates eyed each other suspiciously. Blue and Red shot sideways glances at each other.

“Oh, and one more thing,” said Black, pointing at the center of the table. “The emergency button here? It’s a dumbass place for it, but at least it’s in the center of the Skeld. We’ve got automated alarms for fires, pressure failures, O2 failures, engine failures, just about anything you can think of. But if you hear this—” Black lifted the cover and smashed the button. A deafening honk reverberated through the ship causing everyone to flinch. Pink let out a yelp, nearly falling out of her seat. “—That means,” Black continued, “meet here. _Immediately_. Drop what you’re doing and get to the Cafeteria as quickly as possible.” He leaned over the table and lowered his voice menacingly. “If you’re not here, you’re either already dead, or you’re going to be.”

The crew was silent.

“What if there’s a fire?” Red piped up.

“Then put out the fire first, sergeant! What the hell’s the matter with you? Meeting adjourned. Join me in Admin immediately.”

“Captain, the body!” said the lieutenant. “We haven’t heard all the evidence.”

“Skip it. Not enough time, Purple.”

“Yes, no time,” said Green. “Without the reactor, we only have a couple of hours – at best! – before life support chokes. We’re down to one engine and we’ve no idea what state she’s in.”

“Thank you, Green,” said Black. “To admin on the double.”

“Pink and I are going to Medbay,” said Yellow.

The captain spun around.

“Captain, don’t!” Purple held out a hand, but Black had already marched right up to Yellow and was screaming fiery damnation into her face. Yellow screamed back defiantly until the captain had them both marching toward Admin with the rest of the crew, him dragging Yellow by the shoulder and Brown doing her best to gently guide Pink along as they made the short march from the Cafeteria to the stately Administration Room.

When they arrived, Yellow swatted away Black’s arm. He pointed a stern warning finger at her before turning to the computer to activate the credentials module. The crewmates clustered around the end of a long table with a glowing miniature map of the Skeld. Eight small yellow icons glowed in the area marked “Admin.”

“Alright. Everyone swipe your ID,” said Black, standing up from the terminal.

Brown was closest; she gingerly approached the device with her card in hand. The other crewmates began rummaging through pockets and wallets.

“Pick up the pace, will you? There’s much to do!” said Green.

“I’m trying, I’m trying!” said Brown. “I think my card’s scratched.” The device emitted a grating buzz with each failed swipe.

“Slower,” said Blue.

“It just says ‘Bad Read.’”

“Here, I’ll show you,” said Red, whipping out his card. The device beeped pleasantly. “There, see?”

“Sure, I just… I can’t quite…”

Blue smacked his forehead.

“Can’t we do this later?” Pink moaned.

“That sound is giving me a headache,” said Yellow, sulking in an office chair and scowling sideways at Black.

“Got it! I got it.”

“Splendid. May I?” said Green, extracting what turned out to be a family photo from his wallet.

“You just wait your turn, professor,” said Blue, flashing his ID between two fingers.

“Now listen here, I have important business to attend to!” said Green as he hastily shoved the photo it back in place.

“Sounds a little suspicious.” Blue swiped and promptly headed for the exit.

“Where are you off to?” said Red.

“I have important business to attend to.”

Red turned to Black. “Captain?”

“Hold it. One more thing,” said Black, motioning toward Blue, who turned reluctantly in the doorway. “We’re a skeleton crew, as if that weren’t damn well obvious. Our ship is in a bad way, we don’t have the time or manpower for anyone to loaf around.” He shot a glance at Yellow, who was spinning idly in her chair, waiting for the conga line of crewmates to finish swiping. “Everyone pulls double duty. I want to see all hands on deck fixing the engine, starting the reactor, and keeping life support systems online.”

“Captain, if I may,” Green began. “Without the reactor, power is precious. We have to fuel the bottom engine. Immediately. We have reserves in Storage.”

“Pink, you’re on it,” said Black. Pink nodded despondently and Yellow shot the captain a scowl.

“And,” said Green, “we have to reroute power to only the most critical systems to save what power we can.”

“Yellow, that’s your pejorative. You too, Red. I’ll go assess our trajectory with Lieutenant Purple. We’ll also take stock of the ship. Green and Brown, start that reactor immediately. Anyone whose hurt, talk to Pink and get scanned in Medbay. Let’s go.”

They began filing out of the room just as the final beep from the table sounded and Yellow shoved her card back into her pocket. She hung back a second longer with Pink and Brown while the others left. “Pink, we’re here for you.”

“Yeah,” said Brown. “Let us know if you need anything.”

Pink was silent.

“Look, Pink,” Yellow stepped in front of her. “I get it. I totally get it. This sucks and you’re not gonna feel better for a while. You probably don’t think you’re ever going to be happy again. Ever. You need time, you need rest, but Captain won’t cut you a break. He’s an ass. Listen, it won’t be too long, okay? We’re just gonna get through the next few minutes, okay?”

“Let’s move!” Purple appeared in the doorway, beckoning the three of them. Reluctantly, they left the room and parted ways, each heading to their assigned tasks.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Document ID: #02  
> Title: Notice from Post-Service Integration Program (PSIP)  
> Attn: Capt. Black  
> Contents:  
> We regret to inform you that your request for preliminary disbursement of PSIP grant funds has been denied due to the service dismissal status of one of the crew members on your submitted application roster. However, you are still eligible to receive full compensation for all former service members regardless of status upon successful completion of the shipping contract. Please contact our office for appeallate resources; be advised however that due to volume, the process may take until after the assignment completion date regardless of our decision.
> 
> Signed,  
> PSIP of Mira (NPO) - Funding Service Team
> 
> _(Handwritten inscription at the bottom of the document reads as following):_  
>  Black, stop trying to get this shit pushed through. I didn't make the rules and I didn't pick the crew. Why so impatient? You'll get your money. Get a loan if you need it before the trip.


	3. Wires

“What the hell is this?” Red had removed the panel only to reveal an incomprehensible rat’s nest of colored wires, many of which had been blackened and burnt.

“That’s what happens when you let an asteroid smack a budget freighter wired to a measly 8 amps,” said Yellow as she unfolded a schematic.

“Alright asshole, you want to talk about why the shields were only half powered when we passed through?”

“Hey, insecure much? What happened, happened. Look, Red, just because the captain doesn’t trust me, doesn’t mean you have to treat me like a piece of shit too.”

“I’m sure Captain has his reasons.”

“He does,” she dropped the schematic and turned to face him. “And I’m sorry. Really, I am. But he acts like he’s the only one who ever lost something in a war.”

Red turned away and silently began straightening out the wires.

“Least you can do is give me a chance.”

Red said nothing, but the point was taken. No use in riling up Yellow against him. He waited a few moments before asking, with a gentler tone, “why do you think Black didn’t chew our asses off for what happened?”

“Because Black is the one who routed us through the shower in the first place. A shortcut to save a few bucks.”

“How the hell do you know that?”

She grinned from behind her visor. “Old habits die hard.”

Red decided not to press the matter, turning instead back to his task. “It’s simple, then. I’ll just chop off the burnt excess, then blue wire to blue wire, red to red, pink to pink, so on and so forth, right?”

“That’s right, genius. But first let me cut the breaker for crying out loud, those wires might still be live.”

“Oh. Sure thing.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Document ID: #03  
> Title: Terms of Supervised Release  
> Contents (excerpt):  
> Release and eventual reintegration is contingent upon the completion of defendant's contractual obligations with East Mira Shipping, Ltd., for a period not to exceed seven years. Supervisor must submit written approval of executed labor at the completion of term. Work shall be performed exclusively on vessels wherein supervisor is a registered crewmate. 
> 
> Report will be subject to committee approval for class D felons and above.  
> This situation _X_ (Does) ___ (Does Not) apply for defendant.
> 
> Work must be performed exclusively on grounded or decommissioned vessels for class C felons and above.  
> This situation ___ (Does) _X_ (Does Not) apply for defendant.
> 
> Note other restrictions, if any:  
> ___Defendant may not possess or handle weapons of any kind______ 
> 
> Please sign and return to MRM Parole Office at [address redacted]  
> Supervisor: ___Capt. Black___  
> Defendant: ___Yellow_______


	4. Scan

“Purple, I had no idea. When did it happen?”

Purple stood like a statue on the Medbay scanner as the beam scrolled it’s way across her figure, revealing a detailed visual summary on the control panel where Pink stood. A portion on the lieutenant’s left side just above the hip was glowing red.

“It’s nothing, really,” said Purple. “Nothing a little dressing won’t help.”

“Your suit looks intact, I hope embedded life support is showing up as normal for you there. I can apply a disinfectant and bandage, but you’ll have to take it easy. Maybe lie down and ice it for a bit?”

“Out of the question,” said Purple. “There’s no time to catch a breather over a bruise.”

“It’s hemorrhaging, Purple.”

“I’ll take the bandage and put it on myself.”

“As you wish,” said Pink, feeling too exhausted to press the matter further.

Purple whisked away the materials and left Pink to her computer, but at the exit she paused and turned. “Pink, have you–”

“Generators are fueled,” she said, eyes fixed to her screen. “Every last drop is in the lower engine now. It’s not much, though.”

“Right. Well, thank you.” Purple hesitated a few moments, debating internally. Finally, she spoke again. “He had his quirks, but he was reliable. We’re very upset at the loss. I’m sorry.”

Pink didn’t turn to look until Purple had left.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Document ID: #04  
> Title: Letter of Recommendation  
> Date: 4 weeks before initial departure  
> Contents (excerpt):  
> Pink has demonstrated remarkable skill and attention to detail during her internship. She has an excellent work ethic and a sincere willingness to learn on the job, even when encountering new or stressful situations—I would definitely add that Pink struggles to give less than 110% at all times, making her especially well-suited to the demanding environment that you state is of highest consideration when selecting candidates. I can highly recommend her to be commissioned as part of East Mira Shipping, Ltd.
> 
> Sincerely,  
> [redacted], Attending Physician  
> UEM Hospital


	5. Pupil

“What are you thinking?” said Brown.

“Quiet,” said Green. He was studying very carefully the dials and readings that had sprung to life minutes ago once power had been restored to the reactor control panel. “Might just be enough,” he mumbled to himself.

Brown tapped her foot nervously.

“Stop that,” snapped Green.

She stopped.

Minutes passed, but Green showed no signs of having coaxed a solution from myriad of readings.

Brown sidestepped toward the door. “Can I go check on–”

“Wait here. I may need you.”

She wilted. What was going on in that brain of his? What could possibly be done about the reactor? Didn’t the control matter need to be extracted? Could it be extracted? Was their extra active matter somewhere in storage they could use? Should she be fetching it? Should she be doing anything at all?

“This may be possible,” Green said as if only mildly aware that she was present, “but it will take a little extra… kick.”

“What’s possible?”

He ignored her. She regretted trying. He scribbled on a notepad and stared deep in thought for several moments before snapping out of his reverie. “Brown, shut off lights throughout the Skeld. And reroute power to the lower engine. I’m going to try something.”

“Okay. But… how do I do that?”

“Oh for god sake, there’s a breaker in the electrical room. And you’ll have to play around with the power distributor, ask Yellow.”

She hesitated, finger raised as if to ask another question.

“Go!”

She scuttled away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Document ID: #05  
> Title: Excerpt from Reactor Freight Vessel Runbook Manual, p. 157, published by East Mira Shipping, Ltd.  
> Contents:  
> Notice! - freighter models SK-7a, SK-7b, SK-88, and newer will require admin privileges by default to initiate kill sequence. This requirement was added due to incidents involving over-zealous shut down of the core leading to unrecoverable vessels. EMS Regulatory Code now states that the reactor must remain active at all times unless a fatal emergency warrants intervention from command personnel. Operators are instructed to use throttling and plane skewing (see chapter 8 section c) to cope with the unlikely event of excess power production.


	6. Coffee

Purple sat alone in Admin sipping her coffee through a straw. The helmet pass-through mechanism was damned inconvenient, but she didn’t want to be caught breaking mandatory suit-up in front of the crew, so she endured the child-with-chocolate-milk aesthetic.

The map on the table in front of her emitted a dull glow. Blinking yellow icons reflected off her visor as crewmates moved from room to room across the Skeld. It was a useless device under these circumstances; it didn’t tell her who each icon represented and offered no precision in location, but she guessed Blue was hanging around Comms as always, Green was likely hard at work in the Reactor, Pink at Medbay, and whoever else wherever else, what did it matter? The Skeld also recorded logs for various control panel operations, but to no avail; the killing of a crewmate likely didn’t entail stabilizing thrusters along the way.

Her hip burned; she pressed it gently. Freighter life was hard enough without all the drama. But at least it wasn’t the hardest of lives. She wondered idly what Pink saw on the scan that she – perhaps politely – didn’t call out. Maybe she didn’t notice, or maybe she understood. War is hell.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Document ID: #06  
> Title: Message to Purple  
> Date: 6 months before initial departure  
> Contents:  
> Hey there Purp! Good news, I got it approved :))) The only catch is that they only cover 70% above the deductible, so it's still a chunk of change, but certainly not something that won't pay for itself (I've seen this one before and it is day and night difference - I couldn't even tell if it was left or right at first!). I don't know what you told that buddy of yours, but he really must have pulled some strings. Let me tell you, MRM is full of shit - you won't believe the process! But you know that already, lol. Anyways, I think you know the drill - recovery is expected to take 5-7 weeks, so as always, let me know if you need a hand ;)
> 
> Hugs!!  
> [redacted]


	7. Reroute

The electrical room was foreboding and unpleasant. Dark as a crypt yet alive with the buzzing of transformers and various blinking machinery, the likes of which Brown scarcely understood. She sighed – was there anything on this ship she understood? Somehow working toward this damn PhD had the effect of making her feel dumber than a brick. She had even struggled to gear up in her spacesuit – how she wished to be able to lounge in sweats and a t-shirt! – but the perils of space flight, now more present than ever, erased the resentment she felt at Black’s 24/7 suit-up stipulation. She ran through the checklist in her head. Was her helmet loose? Her visor unsealed? Could she trust she hadn’t been exposed to lethal radiation?

A large panel displayed prominently in the first row of machinery. It opened with a simple handle and inside were rows of switches that looked very much like breakers. The labels and icons weren’t crystal clear, but she settled on a row that looked like a reasonable candidate for lighting. She reached out to flip one, hesitated while contemplating the worst possible outcome, then took a deep breath and flipped it all the same. Nothing happened. She immediately flipped it back, just in case. She tried another with the same result. And a third, and a fourth. But on the fourth, the lights in the room – already quite dim – were extinguished completely. It sent a chill down her spine. She flipped them back on, and after several moments of hand-wringing, finally settled on turning off all switches _except_ the lighting in the room.

_Okay,_ she thought. _Okay. That’s step one. Now… rerouting power._ She looked around the room slowly. Nothing looked obvious. All the other panels required screws to dismantle – was there even a screwdriver anywhere? She walked to the end of the row of equipment found another row of machines behind. It was somehow even darker there in the back of the electrical room, and plenty dusty too.

She stared blankly at the equipment for a minute or two before a hand touched her shoulder, sending her nearly bursting out of her suit. “Augh! Yellow!”

“Oh, sorry. What are you doing?”

“Say something next time, you nearly gave me a heart attack.”

Yellow tilted her head and Brown could tell there was some silent judging going on behind that visor. “Okay.”

“Look I’m not up to anything. I’m just doing what I’ve been told.”

“Which is?”

“Reroute power. Over to–”

“Oh, you too? Okay. I’ll show you how it’s done.”

Brown sighed with relief. “Great, thank you so much.”

“My pleasure. See this panel here?” Yellow walked down to the far corner. “Push up this dial.”

Brown joined her inspecting the control board. It was a row of sliders, each with a matching yellow meter on the above display. “Oh, I see.” She put her finger on a slider marked “L Engine.”

“No, not that one,” Yellow reached over and tapped on a different slider. “This one.”

“Oh. Okay.” Brown timidly pushed it upward and watched as the yellow meter filled to maximum. She felt a sliver of confidence as she released it. “Cool!”

“Yep!”

“Alright, well, I’d better get back to it.”

“Me too.”

Brown retreated down the row of equipment. Looking back, she saw Yellow still standing idly by the control panel. “You coming?”

“Not yet. There’s a data terminal here,” she pointed at another wall-mounted module in the corner beside the power control. “Gotta download something for Blue.”

“What does Blue want?”

“I dunno. I didn’t ask.”

Brown felt uneasy about Blue. She took a mental note: don’t be alone with him. Not that she would ever need to, but just in case. “Okay, well, see ya ‘round.”

“Hey Brown?”

Brown turned back. “Yes?”

“How are you doing?” Yellow walked up slowly to her.

“Well, I’m… you know. I’m fine.”

“Fine?” Yellow said softly. “Are you sure?”

“I mean, I could be better. But I guess… well I guess I’m fine, considering. I mean, I’m alive. Why?”

Yellow stared at her for a second. Then she turned away. “I’m not fine.” She said. “I don’t feel fine at all. I’m good at hiding it, though.”

“Oh. I’m sorry, Yellow. Is there anything I can–”

“There’s nothing. I just wanted to tell someone. That’s all.” Yellow walked back to the data terminal.

Brown stood in place for a second, straining to come up with a response. “It’s just like you said, Yellow. This sucks. It really sucks. But just get through the next little while, the next few minutes. Okay?”

Yellow nodded. “Yeah. You’re right.”

It was uncomfortable. She wanted to leave but she didn’t want to come back and find Yellow bleeding out on the floor. Yellow sounded as though she had lost all hope, and those were just the kinds of people who end up bleeding out on the floor in these situations. But standing there like an idiot solved nothing, so she left. She left and hurried back through the darkened corridors, making her way to the reactor room. The darkness was unsettling; it was as if she had turned the entire Skeld into the back alley of Electrical. The glowing exit indicators and reflective strips were insufficient to orient herself, so she paused to switch on a piddly standard-issue flashlight that barely helped illuminate more than three feet in front.

When she finally made it back, the reactor room was, much to her surprise, completely dark.

“Green?”

No response.

“Green?!”

She shuffled all around in the darkness, tripping over chairs and bumping into panels, searching for any signs of life, fearing the worst. “Green!” She stumbled across a notebook lying open on the floor with hasty scribblings across the page, written in blood. She snatched it up and for several seconds tried desperately to decipher the message before realizing it was just a bunch of chemical and mathematical formulas written in red pen.

“Brown?”

Startled, she whipped around and cast her light on Green, who stood in the doorway with a flashlight of his own. “Professor?”

“Brown, there you are! What the hell is going on? I told you to reroute power to the lower engine, not shut off the reactor room!”

“But I did! I mean, didn’t I?”

He stared at her. “Does it appear to you that we have power?”

“…Okay, look, I don’t know how or what–”

“Oh nevermind.” He dropped his light down to see what was in her hands. “Hey, give me that!”

“What? Oh, this?”

“Don’t go fiddling through my things.” He snapped it out of her hands.

“Sorry. It was on the floor.”

He marched out of the room and left her standing there blankly, shining her flashlight on the floor, wishing she could do _something_ right.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Document ID: #07  
> Title: Unsent Letter from Brown  
> Date: 3 days before initial departure  
> Additional Notes: Document was recovered from trash  
> Contents:  
> Hey Dad,  
> Long time no see. I'm not sure if you'll get this (or read it), but I just wanted to let you know I'll be off in space in just a few days. I won't doing be anything like what you did, but hey, space is space. If you'd like to get on the phone sometime when I get back, I'm sure we'll have a lot to talk about. Finally.
> 
> I guess I might as well say upfront that I haven't forgiven you yet, but it can't hurt to try. If you are reading this, I might as well come out and say that even though my marks were miserable, even though you never thought I could do it, I'm still here. I wish you'd finally stop pretending like I don't have it in me to do what I want. You're wrong. I have it in me. They're going to need folks like me more and more and folks like you less and less and fucking dammit why do I even fucking bother [remainder illegible]


	8. Orders

Green marched past the lower engine room and down the hall toward Electrical. As he rounded the corner, two more flashlights greeted him.

“Reroute accepted,” said Red. “Piece of cake, just like you said.”

“Great,” said Yellow. “Hope he’s happy.”

“Whose happy?” Green barked. Their lights turned on him.

“Oh, sorry Green,” said Red. “Apparently we need extra power focused, so it’s lights out for a bit.”

“Indeed. Superb. And just where exactly are we sending this extra power?”

Confused, Red turned to Yellow, who replied, “Blue’s doing something in Comms. Must be zeroing in on a signal or something, I dunno.”

Green brushed past them and briskly made his way down the hall and up toward the cafeteria spouting an unbroken stream of obscenities.

Red turned to Yellow “Just what the hell is going on?”

“Like I know what’s up his ass? I just do what I’m told.”

A second later, a deafening honk blasted through the hallway.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Document ID: #08  
> Title: Excerpts from a phone conversation between Green and Black  
> Date: 8 weeks before initial departure  
> Contents:
> 
> Black: The program's a little hush-hush because they don't have the regulatory backing for the new model yet. But rumor has it you're the best in the field.  
> Green: Whose rumor?  
> Black: You designed the damn thing, didn't you?  
> Green: And you wouldn't rather have some engineer crank away at it?  
> Black: I'm up to my ears with them. What I need is a scientist.  
> Green: Well, I'm very much obliged. I've been loathe to show them how it's done up there.  
> Black: We'll expect you, then.  
> Green: Also, given the timeline [inaudible] have to bring my understudy along for the ride.  
> Black: Seats are limited on this ride, professor. What's he bring to the table?  
> Green: She's, let's say, a embryonic version of me. A nuclear scientist in the making.  
> Black: Oh, a she? Well, I guess we can clear some space up in space. I'll need her info.


	9. Power

“No!” Green stomped his foot. “No, no, no! I need that power!”

“The Skeld is scrap,” Blue folded his arms. “So what if you save the reactor? The thrusters could blow us to bits in their condition.”

“You might as write a note in a bottle and send it out the trash chute! I’m telling you, no one wants to be our life boat, even if they could hear us. _This_ is our life boat.”

“Blue,” the captain interrupted, “have you been able to raise them? Or anyone?”

“No one,” Blue admitted with a hint of annoyance. “But there’s a weak signal. Definitely not just noise. It’s likely well over a million kilos away, though, so we’re as good as deaf and mute without the booster module.”

“Do you know what it is?”

Blue hesitated. “Another freighter.”

Black studied him carefully, trying to pick up any hint of what that implied. “Do you _know_ that?”

“...No.”

“Yellow, reroute the power,” Black said with a nod. “Let Green get the reactor started.”

“Dammit Black!” Blue pounded his fist on the table.

“You’ll have your booster module,” said the captain, “when the reactor is back. Take it or leave it.”

Blue stormed out of the cafeteria, turning only to pass final remarks. “That thing’s not coming back to life, no matter what Green says. He’s nutty, he’ll kill us all!”

“God. Did you really have to drag us all here to witness that?” Yellow mumbled.

Red looked apprehensively over to Black, who seemed unfazed. “Sorry Captain, I didn’t realize where the power was supposed to go.”

“Save it, Red. Think twice next time. I know Yellow didn’t,” he said as if she weren’t also conspicuously present. She stormed off rather than butt heads this time, and the others also dropped off one by one to complete their assignments.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Document ID: #09  
> Title: Transcription from local broadcasting station in occupied territory  
> Date: 3 years before initial departure  
> Additional Notes: Only Blue's side of the conversation survives.  
> Contents:
> 
> "Do you copy? Over... Hello, do you copy? Over... Listen, I'm at the BBS on the mountain. There is a fleet headed down the valley. Repeat, a fleet headed down the valley. Estimated forty strong. Over... No, sir, I'm a civilian. But I've got eyes on the skies. Over... Well then get him to the radio, I wanna talk to your superior too! Over... Copy, this is Blue at the BBS on the mountain. Just saw a fleet come from nowhere and head down the valley. Over... Listen, trust me. Or don't trust me, fuck it, what do I care? I'm telling you, forty strong. Four zero. Over... Can you tell me your location? Over... Copy that, fuck you too, over... Negative, no clue what kind, over... Negative, definitely not supersonic. Over... From the mountain, North Northeast, why? Over... Yeah, I'd get the fuck out of there, too! Over... Listen, Captain whoever you are, I'm signing off, they probably know I'm here. Thank me later. Godspeed, over."


	10. What About Cyan

Pink had almost escaped the meeting without Black barking another order at her, but unfortunately she found herself picking debris off the oxygen filters five minutes later. Was all this junk really floating around in the air? Where the hell did all these leaves even come from? It was enough to make her gag.

Suddenly, the lights came on and a deep, refreshing sense of relief washed over Pink. She nearly cried – how glorious just to be able to see again, even if the scenery were nothing more than the inside of a metal box!

Red walked in and she quickly resumed cleaning the filter.

“Hey, Pink.”

“Hey,” she replied as brightly as possible without turning.

“Is that the filter?” He walked up and checked over her shoulder.

“Yup.”

“I’ll clean it.”

“What?”

“Don’t sweat it, Pink. I’ll clean it. I may as well do _something_ useful after what’s happened.”

“Oh. Thanks Red.” She stood up and left him to it, surprised but grateful. “Well, I’ll be in Medbay if you need.”

“Sure thing,” said Red, bending over to attend to the filter. Pink was about to round the corner when she heard: “Hey, Pink.”

“Uh, yeah?”

Red turned away from the filter, leaning casually against it. “Do you think Black blames me for all that’s happened?”

“I… I’m sure he doesn’t, Red. A lot of things went wrong.”

“Do you blame me?”

Pink looked around nervously, realizing that she kinda sorta did now that he mentioned it. Or at least, if he was making a scapegoat of himself, she would happily direct her grief at him. But for now, she simply replied: “it’s not anyone’s fault what happened.”

“What about Cyan?”

“What about him?”

“Who do you think it was?”

Pink didn’t want to talk about it. Why did Red have to pry answers out of her now? She just wanted to be alone. “I don’t know.”

“Do you think it was me?”

“I don’t know.”

Red sighed. “It wasn’t, if that makes you feel any better.”

She didn’t respond.

“Listen,” he dropped his voice. “I’m worried. I don’t think you should be in Medbay. Or anywhere, really. Not alone.”

“I’ll be fine, Red.”

“I don’t want anything to happen to anyone. Especially not you.”

“That’s very sweet of you, Red. But I’m the doctor, and I’ve got a post to fill.”

Red stared for a moment, looking somewhat defeated. “I guess I can’t force you. But take care of yourself. Hit the button anytime you need, you’ll never make me upset no matter what I’m in the middle of doing.”

“Thanks, Red.” She walked away.

Red cursed under his breath. Idiot! Pink must suspect him. The captain probably did too. How could he possibly win their trust without looking like a creep? Whoever the killer was, he needed to suss them out fast.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Document ID: #10  
> Title: NJP File  
> Date: 4 years before initial departure  
> Contents:
> 
> Offender: __Red___  
> Rank: _Corporal_  
> Commanding Officer: _Capt. Black_  
> Category of Non-Judicial Misconduct: _Mild sexual harassment_____  
> Disciplinary action imposed: _40h additional duties. 30 day restriction from activities, leisure or otherwise, involving opposite gender.__________________________________________  
> Additional notes: _Officer expresses his sincerest apologies_____________


	11. Revived

“…And _then_ , the generator engine, acting as a giant capacitor, gives a little extra kick to catalyze the remaining substrate. It was perfect! It smoldered for a bit, as you saw, but gradually the reaction escalated as the control matter broke down and the by-products became reagents for the exothermic process.”

Brown nodded her head weakly. At least Green was in a good spirits again, prancing across the lush meadows of his own genius. He clapped his hands and raised them in adoration of his miraculous feat, the revival of the reactor.

“I trust we’ve survived the restoration?” Black came strutting into the reactor room.

“Indeed, Captain, and I’ll expect a medal once we arrive, thank you.”

“Shove it, Green. We’re not dead yet, that’s all this means. Tell me, will the power last us?”

Green reeled it in just enough to stop gushing. “There’s always enough power, Captain,” he said, clearing his throat. “The trick is not getting too much.”

“So don’t let it happen again.”

“Yes, of course.” Green was flustered. “But I must tell you: if she gets unstable, we can’t kill her. No matter what the protocol says.”

“Exactly, Green. And I’m a little bit upset about that.” Black folded his arms. “You know this don’t you?”

“It was necessary, Captain. I assure you.”

“Blue combed storage up and down. Not a drop of gas left.”

“Yes, Captain, sorry. It took a few tries. But we don’t need the generator engines anymore. We’ve all the power we need until the turn of the century.”

“So will it last?”

“She has to, Captain,” Green had sobered up quite a bit. “We have no choice.”

“Wait,” Brown began, “so if there’s a meltdown…”

“Then you’d better get damn well creative,” snapped Black.

She looked from Black to Green. “Yes captain… but if—”

“You’ll have the rest of your life to figure it out, Brown. Just do it.”

“Yes captain,” Green interjected. “She’s stable now. I’ll keep her alive and healthy.”

“We’re counting on you.” He nodded sternly to them both and walked out.

Brown looked sheepishly at the professor, who stared back. Finally, she broke down. “Oh god, oh god, I have no idea what I’m doing! Green, I didn’t understand a word of what you said! I’m sorry, I just can’t think straight at all. If we have another meltdown I don’t know what I’ll do, I just don’t know!”

Green put a hand on her shoulder. “Oh… don’t… don’t worry, Brown. I’ll be here. I’ll walk you through it. She’s a temperamental beast, but we have our ways of calming her down,” he laughed nervously.

“But what if you’re not here?” Brown began trembling. “What if you get killed, and then, and then what? They know you’re the expert! They’ll come after you!”

“Brown...”

“It could be anyone! He’ll kill us all! Or… or she! They know where we are, where we’re going!”

“Brown!” Green shook her by the shoulders. “Get a hold of yourself!”

“I-I’m sorry, professor.” Brown slowly collapsed into the office chair. “I’m sorry.”

“There there, I guess I overestimated your tolerance for this kind of stress.” Green rubbed the back of his neck through the suit. “Let’s see… why don’t you bring me the runbook manual. We’ll start from the top.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Document ID: #11  
> Title: Progress Report for Graduate Study Apprenticeship  
> Date: 6 months before initial departure  
> Contents:
> 
> Student has not progressed on schedule. We have implemented some means of recourse and there will be renewed focus to ensure the next milestones toward candidacy are achieved. These interventions include the following:  
> \- Weekly progress reports  
> \- Bi-weekly reviews of written material  
> \- Weekly in-person laboratory mentoring  
> \- Lighter lecturing/teaching schedule for undergraduate courses  
> I have asked a candidate I am advising to work with Brown in the above areas as my research at the moment requires an extra degree of attention.


	12. Weak Spot

“Captain Black,” Red caught up to him in the hallway outside Navigation.

“Make it quick,” Black snapped, without breaking stride.

“The reactor is our weak spot!”

“Quiet!” he hissed, stopping to face him. “You think I don’t know that, Sergeant?”

“Sorry Captain,” Red stood slightly at attention. “Listen, we’re well clear of any trouble from outside. I can guard the reactor.”

Black thought for a moment. Just then, Purple emerged from the bridge. “Captain, we’re still off course.”

“One moment, Lieutenant,” he replied.

“Hello, Red,” said Purple, with the slightest hint of disdain.

“Purple,” Red nodded, looking her up and down.

“Well,” she continued, “while you two are chit-chatting, we’re veering from our waypoint at the rate of about fifteen kilometers every second.”

“Bend that trajectory. Just eyeball the thrust,” said Black, waving her away. “I’ll help you fine tune it in a minute.”

“Yes, captain.” Arms folded, Purple turned back to Navigation, leaving them alone once more.

Black turned back to Red. “How many know what state we’re in?” he asked in a hushed voice.

“It’s not hard for anyone to figure out, but no point in planting ideas in the wrong head,” said Red.

Black leaned in close. “Keep them safe. That’s a god damn order.”

“Yes, Captain.” He saluted and jogged back down the causeway.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Document ID: #12  
> Title: Certificate of Distinguished Service  
> Date: 2 years before initial departure  
> Contents:
> 
> and it's associated medallion is hereby awarded to  
> _Purple_  
> for gallantry on the battlefield and outstanding commitment to the cause of justice in defense of her nation and kind.  
> Signed _[redacted]_ Second Major General of the MDM


	13. Memories

> There had been ten of us, but white dropped out last second. The bastard, we need a full crew. I guess “secondary” engineer was too unsatisfactory a role – can I help it if I’m more qualified? On the bright side, at least it means a little less competition for that new candy on board. She says she’s in “residency” right now, but it hardly matters what her credentials are, as long as she can do my sponge baths when I accidentally break my leg falling in love with her.

Pink sniffed away a tear and chuckled in spite of herself. What an absolute dork. She turned over in the cot and continued reading.

> They’re lucky to have me; reactor-fed twin engines ain’t no joke. Hoping it’s quiet this go around – cruising is cool and all, but I’m gonna be exhausted when this is over. Which had better, by the way, be in time for when Orange has his big layover. That’s five nights to get wasted at the Mira Hotspot. Muthafukin’ score. Wouldn’t miss it for the world.

She closed the diary and shoved it into her pocket as the sound of footsteps approached from outside. Blue appeared in the doorway. “I see you’re nice and cozy.”

“I’m done with my tasks,” Pink said, twisting her head around to see him without getting up. “If you came to get scanned, you can start with a little please and thank you.”

“Not liking the attitude,” Blue said, casually stepping inside.

She turned her head back, ignoring him. She didn’t care what he thought of her lying down on the job. Whatever he wanted, he could get it himself.

She whipped around at the hiss of the twin doors sliding shut and latching.

“Interesting,” said Blue as he tapped his ID at the panel. The doors reopened.

“What do you want?” she said, annoyed but a little unsettled.

“Where’s Black?”

“Hell if I know. Why, you want to tell him I’m a slacker so he’ll slap me like he did Yellow?”

“Hadn’t thought of that, I’ll let him know.”

She glared. “Find him yourself.”

“Why, is he dead?”

“Get out!” she sprang out of bed. “We’re not fucking soldiers. He can’t tell us what to do.”

“So you admit it.”

“That’s a sick joke, Blue.” She lowered her voice. “I’ll tell you a worse one. If you or Captain dies, I’ll take the blame. They can stab me, choke me, throw me out the airlock; I’ll take it as a thank-you to the real killer.”

Blue stared unflinchingly. “The slightest poke with you. You and yellow. Sends you right up that tree.” He smiled from behind his visor. “Guilty consciences.”

“It’s not guilt,” she retorted. “It’s revulsion at having to justify ourselves to the biggest asshole on board.”

Blue chucked. “Perhaps.” He cocked his head. “Maybe you’re not a killer.”

She clenched her fists.

“But you are a liar.” He walked out.

She walked up to the panel and pounded the button, shutting the doors. Turning, she wept all the way back to the bed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Document ID: #13  
> Title: Excerpt from the Diary of Cyan  
> Date: 4 months before initial departure  
> Contents:  
> Well, she's long gone now. Good riddance to her and the last six months. Un-fucking-believable. I'm just sitting here trying to tell myself they all be like that, but fuck, I just can't stay away from the upper crust chicks. They're too damn hot. I don't know what it is! It's not the money - god knows that's a big red flag and I should steer clear. But I don't. I guess it's the class. Yeah, that's gotta be it. I guess I never learned to fetishize all the trashy bums I grew up around. I want a girl with class, the one thing I ain't got, apparently. God, I hope their not all like her, little miss "no degree? no sirree". Why do I do this to myself?


	14. Hopeless

“Brown, you _have_ to understand.”

Brown glared incredulously at Red. “Since when did you become a nuclear physicist?”

“Look, I don’t understand a damn thing he’s saying. That’s why _you_ have to! I mean, what if Green gets—” he hesitated, “er, becomes… is unavailable when the reactor shits itself again?”

“You think I don’t know that?” her voice trembled.

“Now now, Brown,” Green said, “you’re getting there, don’t push yourself too hard.” He flipped nervously through the runbook. “Let’s backtrack to the injector subsystem, shall we? You were getting the hang of that, as I recall.”

“I need a break,” said Brown, putting her helmeted face in her hands.

“Yes, yes, good idea.” Green snapped the book shut and stood up. “I think I’ll grab a coffee.”

“Wait…” Red looked from Brown leaned over in her chair to Green walking toward the doorway. “Let’s all get a coffee together.”

“I’m fine, thanks,” said Brown without looking up.

“But I don’t want anyone to—”

Green had already left the room. Red grumbled to himself and stayed put – here at least he could guard both Brown and the reactor.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Document ID: #14  
> Title: Warning label on Skeld Defense Systems Control Console  
> Contents:  
> Use of the Defense Systems is restricted to commissioned professionals with appropriate expertise and authorization for spaceflight defense. It is a criminal offense under the Interspace Commerce Act to utilize this freighter's Defense Systems against any class of vessel, manned or otherwise. System is to remain dormant unless emergency requires activation. DANGER: Use of the weapons system to pulverize space matter may result in high-speed particles impacting the vessel. Weapons must be used in tandem with the on-board Shield system.


	15. Ignorance

Green whistled to himself all the way to the cafeteria – he was in a good mood, despite Brown’s underwhelming academic prowess. The reactor was healthy, and that’s all that mattered. What’s more, he had a few tricks up his sleeve if she ever started acting up again. Indeed, there would be no more meltdowns, not after that heroic rescue.

He found Blue and Black sitting in a far corner of the cafe, leaning close and chatting. They stopped and turned when he walked in. He waved and beelined for the coffee machine, still whistling. His notes echoed through the open space. With highly trained hands, he set it up with his favorite Rich Black with Pine Nut blend, and in no time it was whirring and buzzing. He looked back. Blue and Black were still staring. He turned away and drummed his fingers on the table. It was almost finished. A pleasant melody sounded and he removed his steaming beverage from the apparatus. The straw-feeding helmet mechanism amounted to little more than a joke in his mind, so he opted to wait for a sip until he could be back at the reactor to remove his helmet without any judgmental looks.

He whistled his way back across the cafeteria and paused at the doorway to check if Blue and Black were still staring – they were. He waved goodbye and left.

Opportunistically, he stopped in at Medbay. It was empty. Oh well, no need to hurry back; he sat on a particularly comfy looking bed and made himself at home. If he was being perfectly honest, Reactor lessons were not the most titillating of pastimes. He sipped his coffee in silence, hoping Pink would show up and give him a scan, further extending his hiatus.

He thought about Blue and Black. What was their deal? No matter, though. He knew nothing and cared nothing for crewmate politics - what you know gets you killed. Like Cyan.

Indeed, Green was a fish out of water in the freighter world, having neither friends nor enemies, and he was content to keep it that way. Union politics: the underworld of spaceflight. Unlike Brown and her irrational whimperings, he knew the difference between players and ignorant non-combatants in the game of intrigue. He was proudly a member of the latter group.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Document ID: #15  
> Title: Letter to Green  
> Date: 4 months before initial departure  
> Contents:
> 
> Dr. Green,  
> We have been forced to withhold the tenure faculty position offer due to contractual agreements with the UEM Collective Bargaining Association. We offer our sincerest apologies for the situation. Your existing contract has been extended one year and can be renewed annually. If you so choose, you may re-apply for the tenure position in three years time. We hope you will understand and we look forward to your continued work in our department.  
> Regards,  
> UEM Department of Physical Sciences


	16. Trust

Once Green left the cafeteria, Black and Blue turned back to their conversation.

“Listen to yourself.” Black’s voice was lowered. “You know what you’re saying, right? You know damn well what it means.”

Blue shrugged. “It’s been over 24 hours since last contact. Safe to say the operator isn’t out to lunch.”

Black shook his head. “Hasn’t hit you yet, but it will.” He leaned back. “So then what about the bogey?”

“I thought about it. And, I decided I’m glad we waited. I was mad as hell, but at this point maybe we should just disappear.”

Black eyed him carefully. “Do they know we’re here?”

“Sure, maybe,” Blue idly pushed a tray across the table with his finger. “I tried. Booster module was briefly active.”

“I don’t trust it.”

“Yeah, well, it could still be a saving grace. Glad it’s not my call.” Blue lifted the tray with a finger and let it drop, snapping it loudly against the table. They sat in silence for a moment. Then Blue leaned in. “I’m not telling you how to do your job—”

“You sure as hell better not.”

“—but I don’t trust your judgment.” He stood up and walked away.

“You don’t trust anyone,” Black called after him.

“Not a soul.”

Black watched him disappear. “You’ll learn trust,” he muttered.

Blue walked casually down the hallway toward Comms. Black was right; it hadn’t hit him yet. Or else he just didn’t care. Maybe that was it: nothing mattered, and he freely embraced that fact. Nothing, except survival.

Yellow’s screams broke his reverie. He froze, watching as she burst out of Comms into the hall, nearly tripping over herself while bounding past him on her way to the Cafeteria. He braced himself for the emergency honk.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Document ID: #16  
> Title: Transcription from a hallway conversation between a registered EMS communications operator and an unidentified colleague at East Mira Shipping, Ltd. work order office.  
> Date: 1 week before initial departure  
> Contents:
> 
> Colleague: I can loop you in next time.  
> Operator: [inaudible]  
> Colleague: I mean after you get back, next time.  
> Operator: No, I'll be there. I'm not shipping this time.  
> Colleague: What? What happened?  
> Operator: The commander got another guy.  
> Colleague: The fuck? That's bullshit, man. He can't do that.  
> Operator: No, it's cool. Trust me. Listen, [inaudible]  
> Colleague: You're joking. Up front?  
> Operator: Up front.  
> Colleague: Hell yeah, man. [inaudible]  
> Operator: But I told him no.  
> Colleague: You what?  
> Operator: Said no. Asked for double.  
> Colleague: [laughter]  
> Operator: [inaudible] paid it out, no questions asked. Desperate son of a bitch.  
> Colleague: Holy shit. Bastard's got money to burn. Gotta be that military pension.


	17. Fraying

"Everyone say where you were," Purple barked.

No one spoke up. It didn't seem right, justifying one's self around the circle with Brown just lying there.

"Blue, you start."

"Fuck's sake, Purple," he replied.

"That's an order."

"I'm not your soldier."

Pink glanced furtively over at Blue. His arms were folded in defiance—he clearly wasn’t one to be ordered around either. But sensing the pressure, he caved. "Just because she's here in Comms, and just because I was on my way back, doesn't mean a damn thing."

Purple shook her head. "Evidence is evidence. Red, you're next."

Red said nothing.

"Sergeant, speak."

"Red was with me," said Pink. "In Reactor."

"And so was Brown," Red added. "Until she wasn't. Because I didn't..." he trailed off.

"Red told me he was guarding the reactor," Pink explained. "Brown left, but Red asked me to stay."

"It’s not my fault!” Red shouted. “You all keep going off on your own!” He sheepishly lowered his voice again. “What's the matter with you people? Bodies left and right and you all walk around like it's any other day in space. It’s dangerous! I’ve been keeping an eye out. Had to pick between Brown and Pink and I fucked up. I fucked up!"

"You weren't in Reactor, Pink," said Green, slowly but with an edge. "You walked into Medbay just as Yellow hit the alarm. You didn't even turn around; I hurried past you to the cafeteria."

"I didn't hear it."

"You didn't hear it? That sound is enough to burst the hull and you didn't hear it?"

"Lay off her, Green," said Red.

"Shut up, Red," said Pink.

"My, my,” said Green. “You've sure grown some sharp teeth since the last body was found, Pink.” He clenched his fists.

"Leave me alone!" She stormed away toward the door, but Black caught her roughly by her suit, pulling her back to the group.

"We need you to examine the corpse, doctor," Black growled.

"Why?" She shouted. " Look at her neck! Diagnosis: dead!"

"We need clues!" he replied, tightening his grip.

"Let her go!" said Yellow.

"Captain," said Purple.

Black released her. "Sergeant!” he said, turning to Red. “What happened after Brown left?"

"Nothing! Pink left! She didn't want to be followed, that's all. I stayed in Reactor."

"I don't buy it," said Blue.

"Fuck off, murderer!" Red shot back.

"Seriously?” said Blue. “Shit, if I'd have done it, I'd have sent her out the garbage chute, not framed myself. We're not all dumbasses like you, Red."

"What was Yellow doing in here?" said Purple, raising her voice over theirs.

"Yellow's good for favors," said Blue. "More so than any of you motherfuckers."

"I'm not your bitch, you know," Yellow spat.

"You're right, you just like spying and you'll jump at the chance to pitch in."

"What spying?" said Red. "Blue, are you spying on us?"

"Captain gave access.” Blue shrugged. “How else am I gonna protect myself from you dipshits?"

"Protect this," said Red, throwing a jab before anyone could react. He hit Blue squarely in the gut, sending him a few steps backward.

“Hey!” Purple stepped between them while Black and Yellow grabbed Red’s shoulders and held him back. Blue was doubled over for a few seconds before he suddenly came charging at Red, knocking Purple aside. The room erupted into chaos with even Green joining the fray, sending violent punches at everything and anything.

Yellow took an elbow to the head and pulled away. “Stop it!” she screamed, kicking the group. “You fuckers! Stop!”

Pink, who had stepped clear of the tussle before it started, walked hurriedly out of the room with her head down.

“Enough!” the captain roared. He elbowed away crewmates and whipped out a pistol, cocking it so all could hear.

The brawl subsided. To their collective dismay, they realized Brown’s body had been kicked about somewhat and stepped on.

“You miserable cargo rats,” the captain sneered, holding the pistol upward. “Does the fate of it all really rest in our hands?”

“Good God, Black, put it away!” said Green.

“Shut up, professor, before we lose our last physicist.”

The room went dead silent.

“Listen good,” Black continued. “Everyone is gonna do their tasks. Cyan’s dead and Thrusters need tuning. Red, fuck the weapons, fuck the reactor. Get to the engines and get it done.”

Red nodded somberly.

“Half the ship’s still broke – doors won’t close, HVAC isn’t running in all the rooms, control panels are shutting off. Yellow, get your bitchass into those wires and fix it. _Get it done_.”

Yellow didn’t take her eyes off Brown.

“Green, I don’t want to see your ugly face. Stay with the reactor or I’ll lock you in.”

Green dipped his head.

“Blue, for fuck’s sake, give the transmitter a rest. Go to security and keep your eyes peeled.”

Blue grunted.

“I’ll deal with our little Doctor Pink on my own.” Black holstered the pistol. “We are putting the Skeld back together and we are reaching our destination. Period.”

Purple turned to him. “Captain, we need—”

“Lieutenant, shut up.” He stood quiet for a second. The crew looked at him expectantly. “Go!” he barked. They filed out of Comms and scattered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Document ID: #17  
> Title: Invoice from Summerville Spa Resort & Casino  
> Date: 5 months before initial departure  
> Contents:
> 
> Accomodation Type: Diamond  
> Room Type: Single Queen  
> Number of Days: 10  
> Suite No.: 608  
> Total Number of Guests: 2  
> Base Charge: [redacted]  
> Amenities Surcharge: [redacted]  
> Bistro Tabulation: [redacted]  
> VAT @ 20%: [redacted]  
> Balance Due: [redacted]  
> I agree to be held liable to pay the full amount of these charges.  
> Guest Signature: __Black___


	18. Coping

Green led the pack down the hallway, split off, and swiftly marched to the Reactor without uttering a word. He sat in his chair and stared at the control plane. Everything normal. Nothing required attention. Maybe some tuning in a few hours if the thermal feedback climbed above 60%.

He wanted coffee.

Standing up, he paced the room a few times. It wasn’t worth going to the Cafeteria, not while Captain was in one of his moods. But god, he wanted a coffee. He rubbed his chin through the helmet. Maybe he could set up a grinder here in the Reactor. The one in the cafe was wall-mounted, but maybe if he acquired his own portable version, he could have it in the convenience of his office. He could even invest in one of those fancy espresso machines. And a cozier chair to go along with it; these office chairs left much to be desired. They were only superficially padded and hardly ergonomic. A velvet armchair, a bookshelf, and an espresso machine. A modest request, but surely one he deserved. Yes, put it down here, thank you very much. No, don’t touch that you imbecile, I’ll set it up the way I like.

Indeed. The best coffee. Coffee whenever he wanted. Wouldn’t that be nice?

He broke into tears. His whole body shuddered with each sob. “Dear god,” he whispered bitterly. He did his best to stifle the agony knowing Blue would be just across the hall in Security, but he was inconsolable. The seat beside him was oppressively empty. It stared at him as if expectantly awaiting an occupant, unaware she would never return.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Document ID: #18  
> Title: EMCU Account Change Confirmation Receipt  
> Date: 8 years before initial departure  
> Attn: Green  
> Contents:
> 
> This notification has been sent to inform you about recent changes to your account. Please retain for your records.  
> Account type: checking (unchanged)  
> Account number: [redacted] (unchanged)  
> Name of account holder: Green (changed from [redacted])  
> Ownership type: Single Owner (changed from Joint Owner)
> 
> If any of the above changes were unexpected, please notify our offices immediately by calling [redacted].  
> Sincerely,  
> East Mira Credit Union  
> [address redacted]


	19. Buddy

Standing in the deep corner of the Lower Engine room, Red stared at the thruster calibration unit. How the hell did it even work? The large analog slider looked simple enough, but it wouldn’t budge, and the screen beside it was pitch black. There were no buttons anywhere to activate it. He stared for several minutes, listening to the hum of the large generator chugging away beside him.

His stomach growled. Maybe come back to it later? Maybe the upper engine panel was somehow functional? Maybe he could don’t and say he did?

He turned to find Yellow staring at him from the doorway at the other end of the room. He stared back for a second, but decided it was a good time to leave. Making his way around the generator, he cut left toward the second doorway, steering clear of Yellow, who seemed to be keeping her distance from him too. Only once he had stepped outside did she finally step into the room.

"You don't trust me, do you," Red called in after her.

“I want to trust you,” she replied. “You don’t trust me either, though.”

“So you’re my personal spy or what?” He walked back into the engine room. “You and Blue, then?”

"Red, it's not like that. Spying is just watching out for each other. If the killer makes a move, we'll know."

"Tell that to Brown."

"Red, believe me when I say I would gladly tie up every last fucker on this ship and space them ten feet apart just to keep anyone else from getting stabbed, shot, sliced, boiled, or fried. Some freedoms gotta be sacrificed if we want to survive this."

"See? No trust. Did you bring a pair of handcuffs for me, then?"

"Look, Red," she looked behind her then walked up to him, lowering her voice. "People’s stories don’t add up. Except yours. I don't know what the fuck is up with you and Pink, but I trust you. You're as dumb as you are noble."

"Fuck off."

"Think about it!" she hissed, putting a hand to his shoulder and leaning in. “Thing is, some fuckers are liars, but some real motherfuckers are sneaks.”

“Like who?”

“Like Captain. Why is Captain barking out orders, making people run around doing shit in dark corners?"

"Ship's falling apart, Yellow! It takes an army."

"No buddy system? No safety protocol? We walked away from Brown like fuck-all happened." Her voice trembled with stifled emotion. "She was murdered. Just like Cyan. Who next? You're the only one looking out for us. Captain's grinding us to the bone." She faltered. Her hand fell limply from his shoulder and she sat down slowly against the wall.

"Yellow, you okay?"

"God, I am not okay."

Looking around to see they were alone, Red sat down next to her.

"I don't think I can make it another day," she said, staring straight ahead.

"What tasks do you have left?"

She looked at him. "Wires. Fucking wires, everywhere. Just like Black said; why else do you think shit’s broken? God, please kill me."

"I'll help you! It's not that hard. Red to red, blue to blue, yellow to yellow."

Yellow chuckled softly. "There ya go."

"We'll stick together. In fact, everyone should have a buddy. Listen, I can tell the captain—”

"No! Don't tell him!"

"What? It's a good idea. It's your idea, Yellow."

"Red," she whispered. "I. Don't. Trust. Him."

"Why the hell not?"

"You remember he never said where he was when Brown died?"

Red thought for a moment. "Didn't he?"

"He didn't."

Red hesitated. "He was with Purple."

"He was not."

"How do you know?"

"System logs. I can show you."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Document ID: #19  
> Title: Transcript of Yellow’s phone call from federal prison to unidentified party  
> Date: 2 years before initial departure  
> Contents:
> 
> Yellow: Hey. It’s me… I need you. I need someone down here, fast.  
> Party 2: Yellow? Seriously? Go fuck yourself.  
> Yellow: I know you don’t owe me shit. Listen. I’m on my hands and knees.  
> Party 2: Don’t care.  
> Yellow: I’m begging. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.  
> Party 2: Not good enough.  
> Yellow: I’m sorry I can’t say sorry good enough. Maybe I never will. But what else do you want from me? I need boots on the ground out there or I’m dead. Doesn’t have to be you if you can’t stomach it.  
> Party 2: You think I can afford counsel? For you of all people?  
> Yellow: Call in a favor. Or hire a bum off the street. I don’t care. Literally anyone.  
> Party 2: …Yellow, I don’t care.  
> Yellow: They’re gonna cut me off! You can’t be this heartless! Look, I this is my one shot and I chose you. I thought of you and only you. I’m family for fuck’s sake. Can’t you find it in you to do something? Please!  
> Party 2: Same ol’ Yellow. Haven’t changed a bit.  
> Yellow: What? No! You know damn well what will happen to me in here! You’re leaving me to die.  
> Party 2: You get what you deserve.  
> Yellow: No, you bastard! Don’t leave—[call disconnected]


	20. Game

Blue stared numbly at the security monitors before him. In the lower left he saw Black emerging from Medbay, looking none too thrilled. Likely because in the screen above, Pink could be seen not in Medbay, but stealthily moving down the corridor past Navigation, looking down each hallway before darting behind the next corner.

Suspicious but amusing, the lengths she would go to avoid doing tasks. He wondered if the captain—nope, the captain took a left toward the engine room. Wrong way, Black. Pink is as far as she could possibly be. The Skeld wasn’t that big, though, so it was only a matter of time before Pink’s comeuppance.

On the lower right monitor, he saw Black coming up on Security. Blue spun his chair away from the display just in time to catch Black poke his head into the doorway.

Blue stared vacantly. The captain stared back, as if about to say something, then continued down the hall.

_No, Black, I won’t tell you where she went, that would spoil the fun_. He spun back to the monitor. Now no one was visible on any screen. Wherever the chase was happening, it was well out of view. The Skeld had abysmal cam coverage – apparently the architects hadn’t considered outfitting it in the event of an elaborate murder mystery. “Fuck this shit,” he grumbled, spinning away.

He leaned back and stared up at the ceiling with a yawn. It was a naked arrangement of wires, pipes, and control boxes. The longer he stared, the more it turned into a series of rooms and passages, little crewmates running along them and chasing one another. He started laughing, the cackle of a weary madman. This was it. This was the end. They were the final few at the edge of existence and it was a game of cat and mouse, a whodunit. And here he was, whether it be his final days, hours, or moments, watching it play out against the ceiling on a fake screen invented by his mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Document ID: #20  
> Title: Certificate of Extraordinary Civilian Service  
> Date: 2 years before initial departure  
> Additional Notes: Document was retrieved from national archives. Original has been lost, suspected to have been intentionally destroyed. Associated Medallion was found among ashes and refuse.  
> Contents:
> 
> and it's associated medallion is hereby awarded to  
> __Blue__  
> for outstanding bravery and selflessness to the preservation of his nation and kind.  
> Signed _[redacted]_ UM Secretary of Defense


	21. Where Were You

One coffee mug sat empty on the table in Admin and Purple was halfway through the second. There were no straws to be found. She had long since stopped paying attention to the yellow icons blinking across the map, so it came as a complete surprise when Red and Yellow walked in. She nearly spilled her drink as she hastily snapped her helmet shut. “What are you doing here?”

Yellow shrugged. “Uh, tasks, bitch.”

“I was talking to Red.”

“I’m helping Yellow,” said Red. “Thruster alignment’s broke until wires get fixed.”

“This isn’t the engine room, and the junction box is over there.”

Red looked nervously from the junction box by the doorway to the data terminal Yellow had already plugged into. “Hey, look, Lieutenant. This is going to sound odd, but...”

“Sergeant, I don’t give a damn right now. Just get back to the engine.”

“But, I gotta ask you—”

“No, Red. I don’t care. Whatever it is. Keep it to yourself.”

“Just go,” said Yellow, “I’ll deal with her.”

“Where was Black when Brown’s body was found?” he blurted.

Purple hesitated. She shook her head in exasperation. “He—he went to the Cafeteria or something. I think.”

“You think?”

“Red,” Yellow waved him off, “just go. We’ll have everything we need in a second.”

“I wanna know,” Red pressed.

“Look, why does it matter?” said Purple, pushing away her coffee mug. “What, you seriously think Captain is suspicious? He had business away from the helm. He didn’t tell me what. It’s not my clearance. Why the hell would he kill Brown?”

“I didn’t say he killed Brown,” said Red.

“Whatever, sergeant.” Purple turned back to the table and propped her forehead against her hand. “I don’t know where he was. But he didn’t kill Brown. Are you happy? Get out.”

“Where were you?”

“What?”

“Where were you when Brown was killed?”

“The helm! Where do you think?”

They were interrupted by the Pink’s screams outside in the hall. “Leave me alone!” There was a dull crash and a Pink blur zipped past the doorway. She was followed by a lumbering Black blur.

The three of them rushed outside to investigate. In the cafeteria they found Pink and Black on opposite sides of a table, Pink wailing incoherently for Black to go away.

“Captain! What the hell is going on?” Purple roared. He didn’t turn around but kept stepping left and right around the table, baiting Pink to make a break for it.

Yellow charged into the scene, tackling Black. “You motherfucker! She said back off!”

Red and Purple rushed in to abate the violence with limited success. They pulled Yellow off but she shook them away and launched herself at him once more. 

"Mutinous bitch!" Black delivered a crushing blow to the side of Yellow’s helmet, sending her to the floor. "You want a life sentence, you got it."

But helmets were tough for a reason; Yellow rebounded and they would have clinched again had not Red and Purple stood between them.

Black shoved Purple away and reached down to his shin where he pulled out the pistol.

“Captain, what the fuck?” Purple wrapped her arm around his, keeping the weapon pointed askew. “Captain! Stop!”

“Black!” Red shouted, holding out a hand. “Captain! You’ll kill someone!”

“He’s a killer!” Yellow screeched, taking the opportunity to break away from Red and grab Black’s other arm.

The pistol fired. Purple let out a yell, her ear right next to the firing muzzle. Pink screamed again. A bullet embedded itself into the wall above the cafe door. Red lunged, bowling Purple, Yellow, and Black to the floor.

The pistol slid across the ground over to where Pink stood. She stared as the gunshot rang through the cafe for a second or two more, then, with shaking hands, picked it up. She held it for a moment as if unsure how to use it. She looked over at the struggle, and then to the button on the table in front of her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Document ID: #21  
> Title: Personnel Action  
> Date: 3 years before initial departure  
> Contents:
> 
> Name: Red  
> Rank: Corporal, NCO  
> Promotional Appointment to: Sergeant  
> Authority: MDMR 400-3-91, PARA 7-11  
> Additional Notes: Battlefield Promotion, ex post facto  
> Commander: Black, Capt.


	22. Anarchy

Blue was startled awake, falling out of his chair with a yell. It took several moments for him to orient himself and realize this was not his quarters but the floor of Security. Dazed, he picked himself up and stumbled out into the hall where he met Green, who looked similarly worse for the wear.

“I… I must’ve dozed off,” said Blue. “Was that the meeting alarm?”

“Yes, and me too,” said Green weakly.

Together they wandered groggily through the corridors to the Cafeteria where they were met with the sight of Purple, Red, Yellow, and Pink pinning Black to the floor, and the captain looked very much displeased with the arrangement, doing everything physically within his power to reverse it.

“Hey!” said Blue. “The fuck is this?”

“Blue!” said Purple, clearly straining to keep Black’s arm immobile. “Listen to me—”

“Get them off me, Blue!” said Black.

“Listen!” Purple shouted over him. “He’s out of control!”

“They’ve got the wrong man! You know that, Blue, tell them!”

Blue stepped toward them. “This is ridiculous! Purple, Red, get off!”

“Shut up and back up,” said Red. “He’s trying to kill my crew.”

Black laughed. “You think _I’m_ a killer?”

“He’s your captain for fuck’s sake!” said Blue. “Let him talk.”

“I want to hear what happened,” Green said.

“I’m not letting go,” said Yellow.

“Me neither,” said Red.

“Captain, please!” Purple begged. “Just hold still and we’ll talk.”

“First let go, you mutinous shits.” He roared, trying unsuccessfully to pull free.

“Captain, don’t make me do this,” said Purple.

“Lieutenant, you are _not_ authorized—”

“I’m invoking Code 17 and taking command. I’m Captain of the Skeld now.”

“That’s right, bitch,” Yellow jeered.

“Blue,” Black hissed, “do what you have to do.”

Blue tried prying her off. “Purple, you are _not_ Captain of—”

“I said back the fuck up,” Red shoved Blue away, keeping his knee firmly planted on Black’s chest.

Green grabbed Blue’s arm. “If she wants to be Captain, let her be Captain.”

Blue brushed him off. “That’s not how this works. Girls, Red, let him go already!”

“I say we throw him out the airlock,” said Red. “He can’t hurt anybody again that way.”

“Sergeant, I order you to release me,” said Black.

“I trusted you!” Red blew up. “I’m such an idiot. You’re killing my crew from under my nose. I should’ve guessed when you steered us through the meteor shower.”

Yellow couldn’t help but grin. Finally, for the first time, someone had actually listened and taken her seriously.

“And now,” Red went on, “you almost blew a hole through the ship!”

“You want to survive?” Black seethed. “You’ll let me go. Mark my words.”

“What hole?” said Green. “And the meteor shower? Is this true?”

Purple nodded. “Saved a hell of a lot of time, but...” she bowed her head. “I never should have listened.”

“I’m your Captain, goddammit! You trust me, I take care of you. Sergeant, Lieutenant, you know this. You’ve seen this.”

“Trust him.” said Blue.

“Shut up, Blue, you’re next,” said Yellow.

“Give a man a chance to explain,” said Black.

“How do you explain _that_?” Now it was Purple’s turn to be angry, pointing at the bullet hole in the wall. “I’ve never seen explosive decompression before, but I sure as hell don’t need to right now.”

"Lieutenant," said Black. "Purple, look at me. Trust me."

“Fuck you, Black,” Pink said shakily. Everyone turned their heads in surprise to see Pink, holding down the captain’s left leg. “You don’t care about us. You don’t care about Cyan, or Brown, or even me. You’re not half the man you think you are.”

Black sighed and went still. He shook his head with a snort. “Maybe I deserve this.”

“Listen to me,” Blue said. “Lock him up if you have to. But he’s not a killer!”

“Blue, shut up.” This time it was Black who reprimanded him. “I’m guilty. I put all your lives in danger.”

“Captain, tell them!” Blue said.

“Let them have this, Blue.” Black stared up at the ceiling. “Let them have their last victory.”

“No!”

“Blue, it’s up to you.”

“Red, come on, get off!” Blue stepped forward, but Red held out a warning finger and he stepped back. “Look, just… I dunno, tie him up or something. Let’s cool it off.”

“There’s no jail on this ship,” Black said. “You’ll have to shoot me out the airlock, just like you said.”

“All in favor?” Yellow called out. She raised her hand along with Red and Pink. Reluctantly, Purple raised hers as well.

“What?” Blue shook his hands at them. “You can’t vote that shit!”

“I’ll kill you all,” Black said, suddenly writhing and attempting to break free. “Give me an inch and I’ll slit your mutinous throats!”

“Black!” Blue watched helplessly as they rolled Black to his stomach and pinned his arms. Blue tried to intervene, but he only managed to peel away Yellow, who broke free and ran right back to subdue the villain. Black showed no signs of letting up the struggle, but the mutineers managed to start pulling him across the floor and out of the Cafeteria.

“I’ll fucking kill you, Yellow, Pink!” Black bellowed. “You too Purple!”

“Black, you dumbass!” Blue ran after them. “You idiots! Let him go!” Blue tried to stand in front of the phalanx but Red shoved him into a pile of boxes. He sat up from the rubbish and watched them drag Black away toward the airlock chamber.

What had gotten into Black? How could this be happening? Blue watched them disappear out of the room and gave up all hope. They were determined, unstoppable. And he was next on the chopping block.

Green walked up and offered a hand, pulling Blue out from the boxes. Blue dusted himself off and shook his head. “Fucking idiots. You’re wrong. You’re all wrong. This is a mistake.”

“I’m not so sure it is,” said Green. He walked away back toward the Reactor, leaving Blue alone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Document ID: #22  
> Title: Invoice from Summerville Spa Resort & Casino  
> Date: 3 weeks before initial departure  
> Contents:
> 
> Accomodation Type: N/A  
> Amenities Surcharge: [redacted]  
> Bistro Tabulation: [redacted]  
> VAT @ 20%: N/A  
> Balance Due: [redacted]  
> I agree to be held liable to pay the full amount of these charges.  
> Guest Signature: __Cyan___


	23. Airlock

When the mutineers finally reached the airlock chamber, they threw the deposed captain awkwardly into the double-door enclosure, tripping over themselves in the process. “Now! Shut it now!” said Yellow, crawling away from the stage. Pink scrambled around looking desperately for the activation switch while Red and Purple stood gatekeeping should Black try to escape, but the captain did not move. For all the fighting and jostling he had employed all the way down to the airlock, now he remained motionless on the floor of the enclosure platform for the several seconds it took Pink to find the switch.

“Now! Hit it, now!” said Yellow.

The inner lock slammed shut. Silence filled the room, followed by the soft noise of air pumps from within the enclosure.

The four of them looked at each other and then peered in through the small window on the door. Black had sat up but was turned away, facing the outer door, quietly staring. The hum of the vacuums began to fade ever so slowly. Then the back door slid open, revealing the vastness of space. Black slowly lifted off and floated into it without looking back. He blended in perfectly, and before too long his silhouette had vanished into the ocean of stars.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Document ID: #23  
> Title: Excerpt from Skeld Operational Reference, Auxiliary Systems, Airlock  
> Contents:
> 
> The Skeld is equipped with a “lifeboat” auxiliary vessel that should be boarded in case of critical system failure. **The "lifeboat" vessel is not accessible from the exterior of the Skeld**. All personnel must therefore re-enter through the airlock before attempting to board the auxiliary vessel. For detailed instructions and limitations, refer to chapter 17.


	24. Ark

The five crewmates stood together in the doorway of the Cafeteria. Blue stood in the center of the room next to the button.

“Alright,” said Purple. “You called us here. This had better be good.”

“Better be good? You’ve killed a man.”

“We’ve killed a killer,” sneered Yellow. “You lay a finger on us, we’ll kill you too.”

“No more killing,” said Red. “It’s done. It’s over. Blue, go back to Security where you belong.”

“I’ll do the ordering around here,” said Captain Purple. “And yes, Blue, drop it and go back. Black was a danger to us all.”

Blue did not budge. “Idiots. You fucking half-witted morons. You think just because Black kept secrets, he wasn’t looking out for you?”

“He wasn’t. That’s a fact,” said Yellow. “And you keep secrets too.”

“No more secrets,” said Blue. He shook his head slowly and then broke out into a defeated laugh. “We agreed you dumbasses weren’t ready for the truth. We weren’t ready for it ourselves, Black and I.”

“Tell us,” Purple said. “Stop wasting our time with insults.”

“This is fucking Noah’s Ark!” he shouted.

The crew eyed him in silence.

“You thought the war was over,” he continued, lowering his voice. “We’re all that’s left. We are the survivors. The Last.”

“Blue, that is the dumbest shit,” said Purple. “I’m ordering you one more time to go back to Security.”

“I told you. You’re not ready for the truth.” He laughed again. “Purple, you were _so_ ready to throw Black out. After all you’ve been through together? I’m surprised you’re not married to the guy.”

“You’re vastly overestimating the extent of our history.”

“I think not,” said Blue. “I think ol’ Sergeant Red here could back me up on this too. You and Black were tight as two nuts in a sack.”

Purple looked at Red, who looked back but said nothing. “It breaks my heart,” said Purple, “but I did what had to be done. To save my crew.”

“And then Black starts keeping secrets, stepping away from his post, telling you lies and getting all pissed at you for no reason.”

“He changed. Clearly, for the worse.”

“A fucking monster,” Pink added.

“Maybe,” Blue continued. “How would you react if you heard the news I just told you? If you knew doomsday was brewing, knew the trigger was about to be pulled, and could do absolutely nothing about it but hand pick a crew to run and hide with like a damn pussy?”

“Wait,” said Purple. “Back up. Say it again. What’s going on?”

“Mira is gone. Unless they are standing and breathing on this ship, everyone you’ve ever known is dead.”

No one spoke. Purple eyed him dubiously.

“Wait,” said Yellow. “He knew? Way before any of this? You’re saying they dropped a fucking bomb and Black knew all along? So you and he were in bed all this time.”

“Oh, Black knew for months. Or at least he suspected. I didn’t actually believe him until I set foot on the Skeld.”

Purple scoffed. “You expect us to believe the war wasn’t over and the only person he told was a random civilian? That’s some real magical fucking ass-pull, Blue. How long did that one take you to make up?”

“He didn’t tell you, Purple, because he didn’t trust you.” Blue scowled behind his visor. “And you already knew that. It tears you up inside.”

“You’re a liar,” said Yellow. “He’s a liar. He’s just trying to throw us off balance so we’ll be easier to kill.”

“You still have a lot of explaining to do,” said Purple to Blue. “You may have been the last captain’s confidante, but this captain doesn’t trust you.”

“Just throw him out with Black,” said Yellow.

“No more,” said Red. “I think we bagged our killer already. Let’s just stick together and keep an eye on him.”

“The killer’s still among us, idiots,” said Blue. “I’ll be the one keeping an eye on _you_.”

“Get out!” said Purple.

With one final glare, he headed for the exit toward security.

“He’s power hungry, just like Black,” said Yellow to her comrades. “Purple, you’re in charge—”

“And don’t you forget it, Yellow.”

“—right, whatever, but we’re all in agreement. Red, Pink, Green? She’s the boss. Don’t let Blue undermine it.”

“He’ll say anything, do anything to throw you off,” said Pink. “Watch yourself, Purple.”

Purple nodded her head. “If anything happens, drag him in here,” she said, glancing over at Blue as he disappeared. “If we can’t trust Black, we sure as hell can’t trust Blue.”

Overhearing, Blue quickened his pace. They were out for blood.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Document ID: #24  
> Title: Letter from Blue to family  
> Date: 4 days before initial departure  
> Contents:
> 
> By the time you read this, I’ll be long gone. I know you won’t miss me; I won’t miss you either. But I wanted to clear the record. I did the right thing. I’ll believe that until the day I die. You can call me whatever you want, but I did the right thing. I stand by my decision, regardless of the consequences. I always wished I could patch things between us, but it was all of your stubbornness, not mine. If you had wanted me to fight for you, you could have given me something worth fighting for.


	25. Security

Blue’s eyes darted nervously from screen to screen. Purple was in Navigation. Pink went into Navigation. Pink came out of Navigation. Where was Purple? There was Purple, coming out of Navigation too. Okay. Red was in Admin, probably. He didn’t recall seeing Red leave Admin yet. Had he just missed it? Yellow went into Admin. Now Yellow was coming out. Was she looking for Red? Did she find him? There was Red, poking his head out of Admin, and talking to Yellow. Yellow went up to the Cafeteria, Red went back to Admin. Wait, he just caught Purple going to weapons. Probably Purple. Where was Pink? He must’ve missed Pink. She was probably with Purple. Pink and Purple: Weapons; Red and Yellow: Cafeteria. No, wait, Yellow was in Admin, Red was in Cafeteria. No, wait, reverse that. Dammit!

“Care for a coffee?”

“Fuck!” Blue nearly jumped out of his seat but it was just Green at the doorway. “You scared me, doc.”

“Strange. I only have that effect on my students.”

“Sure, I’ll take a coffee.” He reached out but hesitated. “Is it poisoned?”

Green looked down at the mug. “Only if you hate pine nuts.”

Blue stared. “Fuck it, I’m a dead man anyway.”

“That’s the spirit.”

Green handed him the mug and pulled up a seat. They lifted their helmets and sipped in silence for a while.

“You used to be so cocky,” said Green.

“I used to think crewmate drama was bullshit, not grounds for murder.”

“Me too.”

Blue sipped his drink. He thought about asking if Green still thought Black had been guilty, but decided against it. He didn’t want to feel disappointed in Green right now. Green wasn’t hunting him with torch in one hand and pitchfork in the other, so that was enough.

“Why haven’t you killed me yet?” said Green.

Blue nearly choked on his coffee. “I beg your pardon?”

“Just get it over with,” said Green. “I’ve lived a good life. Seen all that must be seen.”

“This is why Black didn’t tell you guys shit.” He wiped his mouth. “You’re defeatists. You look backward, not forward. Try this: we’re gonna need a smart mind in our new colony.”

“Colony? Dear god.” Green took a swig. “No thank you to that. If I can’t have my armchair and bookshelf in my reading nook back on Mira, I may as well be murdered.”

“Well too bad for you, Mira’s gone. And my hands are as clean as my conscience.”

“Wish I felt the same,” said Green.

“Snap out of it, Green. It’s not your fault Brown died any more than it’s my fault I happened to take Black up on his offer to hop on the ark.” Blue sipped. “Survivor’s guilt.”

“What, have you no regrets? You believe it more than I do; I’m still wrapped in the comforting if ephemeral warm blanket of denial. Deep down my brain still thinks I’ll be home in a couple of weeks curling up by the fire with a copy of Winston’s Lectures on Subatomic Theory Volume Six.” He chuckled, then went quiet. “You know, I’ve been remembering all kinds of incredible things about Brown that somehow never crossed my mind all the days she studied under me.”

Blue paused, looking down in his mug. “There’s booze in this coffee.”

“Not in yours, in mine. Sorry if you can smell it.”

“Alright, Green. Have your time to mourn. It’s probably healthy. But if we get out of this alive, I expect you to reproduce volumes one through five from memory.”

Green smiled softly. “You’re sure you want this nutty Professor co-founding your new colony?”

“Look, doc. I really wanted to believe this whole end-of-days thing wasn’t true either. I’m sorry you got a taste of my brand of denial.”

Green stared at the wall and tapped his foot. “I’ll author all the textbooks you could possibly want if I get out of this alive.” He sipped. “But in return, figure out a way to farm coffee beans and pine nuts on this colony of yours.”

“Not my strong suit. Should’ve enlisted a horticulturalist.”

“Should’ve enlisted a lot of folks. Was there really any planning involved? Where exactly did you and Black envision this new settlement? Surely we’re not still headed to Polus?”

Before Blue could answer, the lights flickered and extinguished.

“Ah, fuck,” said Blue. He turned to the security monitors. They were still powered, but he saw only static on the screens. “What? No, not good, not good.”

Green slowly stood up. “Well then. Here’s to hoping it’s a trivial repair—frayed wires, perhaps—or else critical failure and an instant death.”

“Easy, doc. Let’s check the reactor, then meet up with the others.”

Each with a dim standard-issue flashlight, they made their way out of Security and across the hall only to find a closed door.

“Someone taking a bath inside?” said Blue.

“I didn’t close this.”

“Well could you open it?”

“Er… yes. But.” He shuffled through his pockets. “Nope. Left it inside.”

“You what?”

“Look, just use yours.”

Blue sifted through his own pockets. “Fuck’s sake. Left it at the desk. Be right back.”

Blue took a few steps down the hall then turned around. “Why don’t you come with me?”

“You are literally five steps from your desk in Security, my dear fellow.”

“C’mon, doc. I’ve got a bad feeling. Trust me, there’s a killer among us.”

Green acquiesced and in seconds there were back, reopening the door with Blue’s ID. They were welcomed by the majestic glow of the reactor illuminating an otherwise pitch black room.

“Anything look off?”

“Calm yourself, Blue,” said Green, moseying over to the control board and sweeping it with his light. “I take good care of it. I’m sure everything is perfectly—” everything was not perfectly. He stared at the dials and readings, tilting his head to one side. “Did I…”

“What?”

“Why on earth is…”

Blue watched as Green twisted multiple dials and tuned a few sliders which had been pushed to the top of the board.

“Good god, what a mess,” Green muttered.

“What mess? How much ‘coffee’ have you been drinking in here?”

“I know I’ve seen better days, but I know I didn’t accidentally mangle the distribution manifold.”

“Is it broke?”

“No, Blue, not broke, thank your lucky stars it doesn’t go down on a whim. But it’s as if someone kicked a football onto the controls. I mean, those settings make no sense!”

Blue held up his flashlight. “Yeah, of course. I hate it when my distribution manifold reaches the playoffs too.”

“Listen, maybe someone did this. Maybe someone shut the door. I’ll believe anything at this point.”

“Now hold up just one second, Green.” Blue folded his arms and stepped back. “There’s been nobody around. Nobody but you and me. Everyone else is futzing around toward the bow. What the hell are you trying to pull?”

“Wait… what?”

“How’s this: you spin a few dials, walk out of Reactor, lock the door, and join me for coffee.”

“You seriously consider me to be… oh, sure. Then I use my telekinetic powers to kill the lights?”

“Maybe that was a fluke.”

“Blue, we’re smart men. I would have poisoned your coffee then strangled you in your weakened state, claiming self-defense. The crew would have bought it, they don’t trust you.”

Blue thought for a moment. “…that’s…fuck.” He took a step back, looking down at himself. He put a hand to his chest to feel his heart.

“Now Blue, cut it out. I said I could have. But I didn’t. Now do you trust me?”

“You’re lying.” Blue looked up, pointing a finger. “I don’t know what about yet, but you’re dirty.”

“I am not!” Green sighed. “Listen. I didn’t see anyone come by here either. We would have heard them.”

“You distracted me. I should’ve had eyes on the cams. Was that your game?”

“I could see them as well as you. I saw no one.”

“You’re lying or you’re drunk, Green.”

“I wish I were! It’s completely illogical. If someone came here and meddled with the controls, they’d have to still be here!”

Blue stared at him, Green stared back. They began frantically waving their flashlights around the room.

“Come on out!” said Blue, checking over his shoulder regularly to be sure Green was still alright as they searched around. “Do you have any cupboards, closets, or shit like that in here, doc?”

“Storage locker. Over here.” Green illuminated an upright metal locker. Blue stepped up apprehensively and flung the door open, hopping away quickly. It was only PPE and first-aid supplies.

“Maybe the ceiling?” said Blue, tilting his head.

“I don’t see how anything could possibly get up—wait.” Green grabbed Blue’s shoulder.

Blue turned and lit up the professor’s face. Green had a finger to his lips and gave a curt nod toward the corner of the room. Their lights spilled across the floor onto the ventilation cover. Slowly, they approached it. It was ajar.

They turned to each other. Blue shook his head skeptically, but Green nodded slowly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Document ID: #25  
> Title: Excerpt from Reactor Freight Vessel Runbook Manual, p. 297, published by East Mira Shipping, Ltd.  
> Contents:
> 
> There are 6 HVAC propeller engines aboard the SK-7d (some older SK models have 8). These fans rarely require maintenance as long as oxygen filters are regularly cleaned and serviced. To inspect the fans, locate one of the large ventilation covers show in diagram 24-C. For convenience, you may want to use a rover-scope to inspect the fan, usually located deep inside the shaft. A slight buildup of dust on the blades or protective grille is no indication of needed repair. Common failures include sharp squeaking sounds (jump down to bearing replacement), broken blades (jump down to propeller replacement), or engine malfunction (read below). Depending on the type of repair, it may be performed by either entering the shaft and locating the fan or dismantling the enclosure to access the propeller engine, the latter requiring far more extensive labor (see section 25).


	26. Breaker

“You still there, Pink?”

“Purple, let’s not do this.”

Pink’s instability had been chafing on Purple’s nerves for some time. They could all use a night’s rest, but the new captain wasn’t about to risk losing the Skeld to disrepair or sabotage—not with Blue out and about. The light failure was the last straw: once they fix it, it’s the airlock for him.

“Come out in front, Pink, where I can see you.”

“I don’t want to.”

“That was an order.”

“Purple, I’m not okay. I can’t do this.”

“Suck it up, Pink. You want to get out of here alive? We’ve got a job to do. We hired you on for a reason.”

The words stung in Pink’s ears. A reason? If only. The captain could see right through her; everyone could.

Purple’s light shone on the wall, illuminating the word “Electrical.”

“I’ll wait outside for you,” said Pink.

“We stick together.” Purple marched in, pausing to ensure she head Pink’s footsteps reluctantly obeying behind her. “The breaker’s in here somewhere, help me find it.”

“Fine.” Pink’s flashlight darted wildly around the room, chasing every bit of darkness that jumped out at her. “What does it look like?”

“A breaker.”

Pink closed her eyes and exhaled slowly, unsure if she wanted to scream, cry, or implode. _Suck it up,_ she repeated. _Suck it up, whimpering coward._ That’s it—anger. Anger was the only emotion that could hold her fragile mental state together. She could still fake it with anger.

Purple located the panel without her help. “Get over here, Pink.”

“God, just turn the lights on, already,” said Pink, joining her.

“What the hell,” said Purple, inspecting the rows of switches. “Was there a surge or something?”

“I dunno, just do it.” Pink started flipping switches.

“Those aren’t the lights, flip them back!”

“Well how am I supposed to tell?”

“This row. Focus on this row.”

“Hurry up then.”

“No, stop, Pink. I already flipped those.”

“You said do the row.”

Purple swatted away her hand. “Just hold still and let me do it.”

Pink bit her lip while Purple grumbled something about how many crewmates to change a lightbulb.

With the final flip, the lights in the room came on and Pink sighed with relief. Just then, Blue and Green appeared in the doorway.

“Oh, thank god,” said Green.

“Alright Blue, you bastard,” said Purple, slamming the panel shut. “I’ve had enough.”

“Purple, no,” Green stepped into the room. “I was with Blue. He’s done nothing.”

“You expect me to believe the lights turned off on their own?”

“Well, perhaps. Maybe. I don’t know—it doesn’t matter! Listen, Pur—er, Captain, we just came from Reactor. Someone was in there tampering with my control console.”

“I’m sensing a pattern here,” said Purple.

“Yeah, Blue,” said Pink dryly, siding with her captain.

“What the fuck it wasn’t me!” said Blue spreading his arms. “Listen to the man for crying out loud. We were together!”

“All of us were over toward the bow,” said Purple.

“Who’s ‘all of us’?” asked Green.

“Well, Yellow and Red were together in admin last I saw.”

“Blue, you son of a bitch,” said Pink, “you’re the one hanging out near Electrical and Reactor.”

“Both him and you, Green,” added Purple.

“Well then you’ll just have to throw us both out the airlock together, won’t you?” Green snapped at Pink.

Blue didn’t show it but he felt exceptionally grateful for the nutty professor standing between him and certain death.

Before either woman could respond, Red appeared. “What’s everyone doing here? Did something happen?”

“We’re fixing the lights, you big dumbass!” Pink shouted abruptly. Everyone turned toward her and stared. She put her hands over her face and sunk to the ground. The crewmates looked around uncomfortably as she started softly crying.

“Well then,” said Blue, clearing his throat. “That leaves Yellow.”

“Yellow’s in Lower Engine,” said Red.

“How do you know?”

“Saw a blip there from the admin console. Must be her, now that I found y’all here.”

Green and Blue immediately turned to each other. “It fits, it definitely fits,” said Green. “The proximity alone guarantees it.”

“Guys,” Pink blubbered through tears. No one heard.

“Let’s get her,” said Blue, beckoning to the crew.

“‘Get her’? What the hell are you talking about?” said Red.

“Guys, I have to tell you something,” Pink stood up.

“We’ll explain later, just trust me for fuck’s sake!” said Blue, ignoring her.

Red nabbed Blue by the shoulders. “If this is a trick,” he warned, shaking him with each word.

“Guys!” Pink shouted.

Blue pushed Red away and they all turned toward Pink.

“I’m an impostor.”

The master alarm sounded and the room was bathed in red.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Document ID: #26  
> Title: Note matching Blue's handwriting  
> Date: Between 1 and 5 days before initial departure  
> Contents:
> 
> When you can, take a 2nd look at that letter of rec. I followed up and left some notes. You sure you want her on board?


	27. Save It

The crewmates stormed down the hall toward the reactor room.

“Oh god,” said Pink, stumbling weakly alongside them. The intermittent blaring of the alarm was somehow twice as grating now as when they passed through the meteor shower, carrying with it the haunting memories of when all the shit first hit the fan.

“Hurry up, Pink, we’re not leaving you behind!” Purple grabbed her by the suit and pulled her along. “Everyone just go, we’ll catch up!”

Green didn’t need telling twice. He bolted past the engine room and through the passage toward the Reactor, followed closely by Blue and Red. “Dammit, dammit, dammit!” he screamed as he rounded the corner and saw the enclosure glowing ominously brighter and whiter than before. Launching himself onto the control panel, he began furiously spinning dials and tapping sliders.

“Fuck!” said Blue, yelling over the alarm. “We shouldn’t have left it alone!”

“What the hell is going on?” Red shouted.

“It’s Yellow!” Green screeched, pounding controls with one hand and flipping through the runbook with the other. “Yellow was in here tampering with the Reactor!”

_Or Red,_ Blue thought to himself and nearly said aloud, had said crewmate not been standing beside him.

“What?” said Red. “No she wasn’t, that’s not even possible!”

“The goddamn ventilation,” Green hissed to himself. “Crawling through the vent like it’s a shitty paperback thriller. Who built this ship?”

Blue stared nervously at the chamber. The active matter started pulsating. What was happening? Was it supposed to do that? Is this how it looked last time? “Uh, Green. Let’s kill the damn thing.”

“No!” said Green and Red in unison.

“But it’s fucked!”

“We’ve got nothing else for power!” said Green.

“Yeah,” Red added, “you’ll all be dead in a matter of hours without it.”

“You’ll be dead in seconds with it! I wanna live for the hours,” said Blue.

“I think I can do it,” said Green. “I think it’s working. Oh sweet mercy I think it’s working.”

Red and Blue watched the reactor anxiously. Was anything changing? Green sounded relieved, but the feeling wasn’t shared until the pulsating had ceased and the color inside visibly began to soften. After a nerve-wracking minute or two, the alarm silenced and the three of them collectively sighed.

“Where’s Purple?” asked Red.

They looked at each other.

“Ah, shit,” said Blue. “See, you know it wasn’t me! I’ve been here the whole damn time!”

The three of the ran out and down the hall toward Lower Engine.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Document ID: #27  
> Title: Photograph containing inmate identified as Yellow, immediately prior to parole hearing  
> Date: 5 months before initial departure  
> Description: Evident in the photograph are numerous thin scars on subject's left inner forearm especially near the wrist. Right inner forearm not visible. Close inspection of the left forearm also reveals a small, partially obscured tattoo consisting of at least two copies of an unidentified symbol. The nature of the tattoo as well as subtle differences in color and shape between the two symbols suggest they were inked using improvised materials at different times. It can be postulated but not conclusively determined from the photograph that more copies of this symbol are present.


	28. Killer

The master alarm blared, and while Green, Blue, and Red had run ahead to tend to the Reactor, Pink had collapsed on the ground in Lower Engine. “I can’t do it,” she wailed. “I can’t fucking do it anymore, I'm not supposed to be here.”

“Come on, soldier!” said Purple, yanking her by the arm. “You’re not done ‘til you’re dead.”

“I’m not a soldier!” she cried. “I’m not anything, I’m nobody! Don’t you get it? I’m not a doctor!”

“Pink!” Purple stopped pulling and crouched down beside her. “You are panicking!” She shook her by the helmet. “You are traumatized. You're freaking out. But you are _not_ nobody.”

“I’m nobody, I told you I’m fucking nobody. I lied! Not even a year out of med school, I’m a fucking liar! I shouldn't be here!”

“Pink!” Purple looked her straight in the eye. “I don’t care! I _need_ you! I need you to save me, and my crew! I need you to be there for us in our darkest hour. Not Red, not Green, not anyone else. I. Need. You.”

Pink stared at her, confused. How could anyone possibly need a whimpering, worthless dropout? She was better off dead. But something in Purple's eyes felt sincere, and for the first time she started to believe that perhaps...

“Don’t abandon us,” said Purple, a little softer, a little gentler. For a moment the sound of the alarm seemed to fade into the background.

There was a sound of a door slamming. Pink broke away from Purple's gaze and saw the entrance they had come in was closed. Looking back at Purple, her eyes widened and she pointed behind her captain's shoulder, who turned around to see Yellow standing over her, arm raised. Purple held out a hand. Yellow’s knife came plunging directly into the center of her palm.

Pink screamed, barely feeling the hard metal floor beneath her as she clamored on all fours away from the duo now locked in combat.

Purple lay with her back to the floor, one hand impaled and the other pressed against Yellow’s helmet, pushing back against her foe and keeping the blade from inching any closer to her body. Yellow kneed Purple’s helmet, loosening her stiff arm, but before the knife had a chance to close in, Purple twisted her pierced hand against the blade, wrenching it out of Yellow’s fingers. She followed up with a stiff kick to Yellow’s gut.

Though knifeless, Yellow was no less determined. She was back on Purple before the latter had a chance to get up, and despite Purple’s attempts to kick Yellow away, it was now Yellow who was doing the kicking; a stiff one to the chest put Purple once more flat on her back, followed up by hefty kicks to the side where Yellow could stay clear of Purple’s retaliating legs.

Meanwhile, Pink had fled to the second door which led to the Reactor but found it had also been locked. She rifled through her pockets for her ID but it was nowhere to be found. One hand searched frantically while the other resorted to banging on the door. She screamed for help, vainly howling against the cold, solid steel just as she had done in the when Cyan was killed. Her cries echoing down the hall into Reactor were drowned out in the peal of the master alarm.

Then her hand fell upon something else: the pistol. When she recognized the hard angular shape of the handle on her fingers, a switch flipped in her brain and she realized whether she came out of this dead or alive, she didn't want to be the one screaming and banging helplessly on the door again. Whipping it out, she turned and with unskilled hands aimed at Yellow, whose back was turned while giving Purple a beating. Closing her eyes, Pink pulled the trigger, wincing in anticipation of the bang.

But there was no bang. She squeezed harder—nothing. Opening her eyes, she looked at the pistol. What was wrong? Yellow was still thrashing Purple, time was running out! Why wouldn’t the damn thing work? _Fuck it!_ With renewed determination she charged Yellow, pouncing on her back. Yellow wasn’t taken by surprise; she stumbled forward and fell, but, deftly turning, landed on Pink, sandwiching her against the floor. Her momentum rolled her over Pink and onto her feet.

Head spinning, Pink stared up at the ceiling. The pistol had flung out of her hands and lay somewhere unnoticed. Yellow came abruptly into view, reaching down and yanking her to her feet.

Meanwhile, Purple had uncurled from her fetal pummel-absorbing position and got back on her feet. The alarm was still blaring, pounding mercilessly in her head. A sudden squeal caught her attention and she looked over to see Yellow with her arm around Pink’s neck.

Purple seized handle of the knife still protuding from her palm and removed it. “Don’t you dare!” said Purple, brandishing it at Yellow.

“You learn a thing or two in the pen.” Yellow said, giving Pink's head a threatening twist. “Helmet just makes it easier, believe it or not.”

“I swear to god if you harm her...”

“You wanna protect your precious Pink? Put that shit down, bitch.”

Purple glared at her but dropped the knife.

“Now back the fuck up.”

Palms raised, Purple took a step sideways toward the second entrance.

“I said back that ass up,” Yellow shouted over the alarm.

“I’m not letting you out of my sight, Yellow,” came Purple’s reply.

“Good luck with that.” Yellow sidestepped toward the opposite door. With her free hand, she fumbled around her pockets and pulled out an ID card. Pink looked sideways down at it and saw it was hers.

“Wait,” said Purple, not daring to step closer. “Take me instead.”

“What?” Yellow attempted to maneuver Pink’s squirming body so she could tap the ID. “Take yourself,” she said.

“No, let her go and I promise I’ll let you kill me.”

Yellow stopped and stared for a second then howled with laughter. “That’s not how this works, dumbass. God, you’re crazy. I never knew!”

“You don’t believe me?”

“What the fuck kind of offer is that?”

“Purple, don’t!” Pink moaned. Yellow tightened her grip.

“Watch,” said Purple. She slowly bent down to pickup the knife.

“Hey! I’m a split second away from sealing the deal with your girlfriend here!”

“No, I promise!” Purple slowly laid herself down flat on the ground and reached carefully for the knife. Yellow watched incredulously as Purple took it in her hands and held it above her chest. “I’ll kill myself, you let her go.”

Yellow couldn’t believe what she was seeing. “Kill yourself then. Prove it. Hell, I’ll be so impressed, I may as well kill _my_ self too!”

“Do you promise to let her go?”

Yellow hesitated. “Yeah. Yeah, sure, alright. I promise. Kill yourself, Pink dies another day,” she said with a smirk.

Purple stared at the blade and took a deep breath.

“What are you doing?” Pink cried.

The alarm stopped. The three found themselves in abrupt silence. Yellow looked around the room, wondering if perhaps the lights would flicker and extinguish or if the hull would suddenly burst apart. Nothing happened. Oh well, the reactor had been a crapshoot anyway.

“Goodbye, Pink,” said Purple, holding the knife steady. “It’s been an honor serving as your Captain.”

“Purple, no!”

“Fucking hurry up,” said Yellow, repositioning her grip on Pink.

“I’m counting on you, Pink,” Purple’s voice quivered ever so slightly. “We’re all counting on you. Red, Green, Blue. Hell, even Brown and Cyan.” She took a deep breath. “All of us.”

Yellow shook her head and rolled her eyes. “I’m fucking out of here—” but the door opened behind her before she even had a chance to tap the badge. She turned her head to see Red standing behind her. Without a split second’s warning, he delivered a crushing blow to her spine. She crumpled immediately to the floor, releasing Pink.

“What the hell took you so long?!” said Purple, throwing the knife aside and jumping to her feet.

“Well, well, well,” said Blue, emerging just behind Red and tucking his ID into his pocket. “You believe me now?”

“Red, you idiot, I said we’d catch up!” Purple continued, back to her normal self. “God dammit Sergeant, you weren’t at all fazed when we didn’t make the last five steps to Reactor?”

Red stood motionless, eyeing Yellow’s moaning body on the floor. “I didn’t think…” He trailed off but left it there. He didn’t think. He wasn’t thinking.

Pink slowly got to her feet and was about to say something when Green burst into the room. “Purple! Pink! Oh thank god.”

“Green, nice job with that Reactor, be faster next time," said Purple. "Red, grab that little shit,” she pointed at Yellow on the floor. “You know what we need to do.” She tapped her ID on the second door and it slid open.

Blue and Green gleefully led the way while Red picked up the felon, who was just regaining motor function. He led her out of the room, her arms pinned firmly behind her back.

Pink watched as the parade exited, unsure how she felt about being ignored but grateful Purple hadn’t yelled at her. As the captain made to leave, bringing up the rear of the death march, Pink called after her. “Purple! Er, Captain.”

Purple turned around. “What?” she said curtly.

“I’m… I mean, are you… are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” she said, then turned and left without another word.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Document ID: #28  
> Title: Excerpt from the diary of Cyan  
> Date: 1 week before initial departure  
> Contents:
> 
> Just found out that chick Black set me up with is part of his crew. God fucking dammit. Is this what he means by "favor"? I mean fuck, all-expense paid night out in the 'ville - hell yes. And like, she seems kinda messed up so I guess I wanted her to have a good time. But am I an asshole for being friendzone goalie? I didn't push for the one-night-stand, she better not have any ideas. Oh fuck, what am I saying? She's probably over there like "look at this dumbass and his uncle's credit card." Nah, she probably gets it. Just gonna be hella awkward when we go to space.


	29. Coward

Yellow squirmed and thrashed about, but she could feel Red’s firm grip effortlessly restraining her. “Come on, man,” she said, craning her neck to look back at him, “don’t do this.” He stared back silent, blank. She finally relented and walked the remaining route to the cargo bay without protest. Once the crew were all inside, Red stayed by the entrance and let Blue do the honors of escorting the prisoner to the lock. He did so with pleasure and no small amount of harshness, seizing Yellow’s wrists and dragging her toward the stage.

“Easy, easy!” said Yellow, pulling against him. “I’m not going nowhere with all you fuckers watching, may as well give a girl her last words.” She managed to bring him to a halt.

Blue wasn’t in the mood for a speech, but the rest of the crew looked like they had a bone to pick with her. Under their watchful eyes, he released her with a shove.

Yellow stumbled onto all fours. Glancing up at her crewmates, she heaved a sigh. “I knew about doomsday. All along. Black told me. I didn’t ask to be on this fucking ‘ark,’ he tricked me. I just wanna be dead. I don’t wanna fix wires, shields, or any of this space shit.”

“So you went postal?” said Purple. “Couldn’t take it anymore, but had to take us all with you? After all we did to cover your ass.”

“Fuck you.” She stood up. “You always thought I was a scumbag. All of you. Even before you thought I was a killer.” She looked past the menacing half-circle of crewmates to see Red, who had taken a seat on a crate by the entrance. He stared silently at the ground.

Her face hardened. But then she broke into a smile. “God, who am I kidding. I wanted revenge. I sure as hell hope you all still consider it a win, getting rid of Black. It was all worth it, so worth it, just to stick it to that fucking—”

Blue punched her in the gut and she doubled over.

“Okay,” she wheezed. “Okay, too soon.”

“So you killed them all, then.” said Green. “Out of spite for being saved? Even Brown? She didn’t think you were a scumbag.”

Catching her breath, she turned to Green. “Look at you, giving a shit about Brown. She saw me near Engine when Cyan died. She just didn’t have the guts to throw her only friend under the bus.”

“She did have the guts – more guts than a coward like you,” said Green. “That’s why you had to kill her. Because she would have come forward in the end. God, and to think you pretended to find her body? You’re a sick scoundrel.”

“I did her flimsy neck a goddamn favor. What the hell makes you think a rag-tag freighter crew is gonna outlive Mira? You’re all just gonna die slow and painful.”

The words sunk in for a time, but the cold stares of the crewmates and their united hatred for Yellow outweighed any possible introspection around their predicament. They felt violated, reflecting on everything she had said and done, every slippery deception, every despicable lie, every dead body.

“I though you were my friend, too,” said Pink. “How could you… how could anyone be so… I hate you, Yellow. I hate you so much!”

Yellow could tell Pink was holding back tears, but she didn’t care in the slightest, for she could only feel a twisted sense of gratitude. After all, without Pink perhaps the ride never would have started, and what a ride it had been. She could think of no better time to have finally snapped than in space among a crew so vulnerable. And while the game was up, playing had made her feel truly alive for the first time since her innocent youth.

“Maybe you’re right,” she said, straightening up. “I’m a coward. And a dirty liar. But I live and die on my own terms.”

“Get your filthy ass in there,” said Blue, shoving her toward the open maw of the airlock, “or I’ll smash that visor before sending you off.”

“Like to see you try,” she spat, but obliged nonetheless. “One last thing,” she turned to face them. “I’m glad I didn’t die in a Reactor meltdown. Something something boots on and all that shit. And getting to see your faces when you found out I lied.” She stepped backward.

The door slammed in front of her. She glowered at them through the window but then smiled right up until the rear lock opened.

Then she floated away, slowly somersaulting into the void.

The crewmates, having seen their fill, somberly left the room one by one until it was just Red left sitting on his crate.

He stood up. Walking over to the lock, he looked out the window and watched Yellow drifting. He stayed a moment or two before finally turning away to join the crew.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Document ID: #29  
> Title: Excerpt from transcript of Yellow's parole hearing  
> Date: 5 months before initial departure  
> Contents:
> 
> Judge: Addressing the defendant specifically, how many soldiers were in the convoy?  
> Yellow: I don't remember.  
> Judge: Can you estimate?  
> Yellow: I don't know. Few dozen.  
> Judge: Were you aware there could have been a couple dozen at the time?  
> Counsel: Defendant declines to answer, your honor.  
> Judge: Were you aware of the impact sharing this material information would have on the lives of the men and women on that convoy?  
> Counsel: No comment.  
> Judge: Your initial hearing states that critical information about the convoy was voluntarily leaked. I don't see room for any significant redefinition of the charge from those proceedings. However, I understand there have been some developments?  
> Counsel: Your honor, we are petitioning based on this new information in combination with the testimonies of Yellow's commanding officers.  
> Yellow: I knew how many were on the convoy.  
> Counsel: Your honor, this information is irrelevant.  
> Judge: It's your hearing, Yellow.  
> Yellow: Look it's fine, whatever. Lock me up, throw away the key. Of course I knew it wasn't just an empty ship. I knew what I did when I did it. That's why I'm here, right? Your honor.  
> Judge: The testimonies imply the information was extracted, not given. This contradicts your earlier testimony.  
> Yellow: Yeah, I told them everything. Everything. I was scared. Look, I'm not some spec ops, no one asked me to keep secrets, no one told me how to keep my mouth shut after seeing what they did to [unfinished]  
> Counsel: Your honor, she is referring to the Sergeant and the three enlistees who were also captured. Their bodies had not been found at the time of the initial hearing. We ask you to review the forensic report.  
> Judge: I have reviewed all the information. Yellow, do you wish to elaborate on your experience?  
> Yellow: I just. I don't remember a lot because I don't know I can't really say. I told them everything because I was scared. And they had told me what they were going to do if I didn't say. And they did it all anyway. And I can't remember it. I remember what it felt like in there I remember what it smelled like while I was in there. I just remember that stuff you know it's like it's kinda like I'm up against bricks and I can only feel and smell the bricks and I don't want to turn around I don't want to see what's behind me like right now I'm trying to remember it and I won't let me because I don't want to turn around I just don't want to turn around. And I don't know how long I was in there and I think it was days and days and days but I don't think I ever slept so I don't know. I remember when I was out I didn't have my hair and my fingernails and I didn't even recognize me the next time I saw me. They did it anyway. I told them everything but they did it all anyway.  
> Judge: You can take a moment. Take as long as you need.  
> Yellow: So. Yeah. Anyways. So like then they put me with the militia, you know the one. And it was all I had. So just like that I'm on the losing side and I'm going to hell for it.  
> Judge: Granted there may be a case for coercion, this doesn't explain your continued antagonistic behavior following the occupation.  
> Yellow: Yeah well at some point staring at those bricks I realized Sergeant and the others hadn't sacrificed themselves for me. That was some fake noble bull. They were cowards too. They threw me under the bus. Last one dead's a rotten egg. They knew that. I didn't. Your honor, I didn't care who I was fighting after that.


	30. Get Some Rest

The crewmates sat around the Cafe table silently. No one had hit the button, no one had announced a meeting, but an unreleased tension hung in the air and in one form or another they craved a sort of debriefing, some kind of acknowledgment of the state they now found themselves in, reeling from the events of the past 24 hours.

The crew waited for Purple to take charge, but she said nothing. Finally, it was Pink who broke the silence.

“I shouldn’t be on this ship. I’m sorry.” She stared down at her lap. “You all deserve someone who can—”

“Look, Pink,” said Purple. “We don’t need a doctor right now. We need some able-bodied hands getting shit done.”

“I can’t...”

“First things first, go straight to Medbay and get some rest. That’s an order.”

Pink looked up at Purple’s assertive stare. She couldn’t object to that. Even if sleep wouldn’t come easy, she could at least be relieved her captain wasn’t chewing her out for lying. Despite her crushing guilt, it was turning out that being a med school dropout didn’t amount to an airlock offense. She stood up took her leave of the crewmates seated around the table.

Blue sheepishly avoided eye contact as she plodded off toward Medbay. If anyone needed sleep, it was certainly the girl who’d seen all her friends murdered. Really, though, they _could_ use a doctor. But he’d take what he could get and try not to hold it against her. He felt a twinge of regret—he had been wrong, but at least he hadn’t thrown her out the airlock. Not like they did to Black. “I want an apology,” said Blue suddenly, looking between Purple and Red. “You killed Black. You almost killed me.”

“I did what had to be done,” said Purple. Red was silent.

“The hell you did. Next time, trust me when I say—”

“Shut _up_ , Blue!” Purple yelled, slamming her fists against the table. The crewmates were stunned into silence. But they also noticed the rather unnatural-looking hole in her hand, which passed right through the glove of her spacesuit. Realizing, she tucked it away and stormed off toward Navigation without another word.

Red, Green, and Blue stared awkwardly at one another. None had the strength to risk argument or provocation.

After a long silence, they heard a soft growl. “I’m so damn hungry,” said Red.

“We could all use some rest and refreshment,” said Green, with a nervous laugh. “Anyone want a coffee?”

Blue stood up and left without comment. He was hungry too, but he could stomach neither food nor conversation. Red and Green could fend for themselves. “Alright then, I guess,” he heard Green say as he exited the Cafeteria.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Document ID: #30  
> Title: East Mira Shipping Veteran Employment Application  
> Date: 5 months before initial departure  
> Contents:
> 
> Applicant name: __Purple__  
> MDM position and rank: __First Lieutenant, Platoon 95______  
> NOTE - If seeking specific positions within the company, please attach additional credentials.  
> Service ID: _49729385__  
> Commanding officer: __Black, Capt.____  
> Time served: _8_ years  
> Service status: ___ Active Duty _x_ Reserve ___ Retired ___ Discharged  
> NOTE - selecting "Discharged" will require additional attached paperwork, see Form D for details.  
> Have you worked previously with East Mira Shipping, Ltd.? ___ Yes _x_ No  
> Do you have any injury/disability that may interfere with normal occupational duties? ___ Yes _x_ No  
> NOTE - As per law, if you have answered "Yes" you will need to fill out a separate application including documentation from a qualified physician as well as a signed Form H from MRM detailing reasons for ineligibility for the Armed Services Care Program.  
> Preferred start date (leave blank for earliest available): ___________


End file.
